Less than half of UK micro-enterprises are happy with their business banking, according to new research by IT specialist Comarch.
In a survey carried out amongst companies in the so-called ‘Tech City’ area of East London, 53% SMEs were happy with their business banking, but only 48% of micro-enterprises employing 10 people or under were happy.
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Eva Jasiecka, managing director UK of Comarch, said: "For micro-enterprises, it’s crucial that banking should be quick and easy, allowing them the maximum amount of time to get on with running their business and driving growth.
"If these services are not being offered, it’s little wonder that more than half are dissatisfied with their bank.
"The demand for the services is there and, crucially, so is technology required to deliver them."
The survey found that the majority of SMEs were satisfied with the basics, with 69% finding their banks helpful, 72.5% saying they were trustworthy and 63% happy with their lending policies.
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By GlobalData59% of micro-enterprises believed business growth could be improved with specialist banking services, but most said they were not being offered them.
Despite only 8% of survey respondents being offered cash flow forecasting, 20% would be willing to pay for it, 29% would be willing to pay for payment automations within existing systems and 27.5% would be willing to pay for push notifications.
Jasiecka said: "SMEs make up 99.9% of all UK private enterprises and yet they are still getting a poor service from their banks.
"Services such as cash flow forecasting and payment automations are vital for SMEs to control their finances and streamline internal processes.
"Despite the dedicated services not being offered, many of the companies we spoke to said they would be willing to pay for them.
"Only 7% of micro-enterprises had been offered cash-flow forecasting, for example, but more than one-in-four would be willing to pay for them."
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