CBILS

CBILS closed for new applications on 31 March 2021. No new CBILS applications can be accepted. This page is for reference for borrowers and brokers with CBILS applications in progress.

CBILS

Overview

Up to £5m facility: The maximum value of a facility provided under the scheme is £5m, available on repayment terms of up to six years.

No guarantee fee for SMEs to access the scheme: No fee for smaller businesses.

Interest and fees paid by Government for 12 months: The Government will make a Business Interruption Payment (BIP) to cover the first 12 months of interest payments and any lender-levied fees1 , so smaller businesses will benefit from no upfront costs and lower initial repayments.2

Finance terms: Finance terms are up to six years for term loans and asset finance facilities. For overdrafts and invoice finance facilities, terms will be up to three years.

Guarantee to the lender: The scheme provides the lender with a government-backed, guarantee against the outstanding facility balance. The borrower always remains 100% liable for the debt.

Principal Private Residence (PPR) – A borrowers/guarantors PPR cannot be taken as security to support a Personal Guarantee or as security for a CBILS backed facility.

The borrower always remains 100% liable for the debt.

  1. 1 Following earlier discussions with the banking industry, some lenders indicated that they would not charge arrangement fees or early repayment charges to SMEs borrowing under the scheme. HM Government greatly appreciates this approach by lenders.
  2. 2 Fishery, aquaculture and agriculture businesses may not qualify for the full interest and fee payment.

No personal guarantees for facilities under £250k: Personal guarantees of any form cannot be taken under the scheme for any facilities below £250k.

Personal guarantees for facilities above £250k: Personal guarantees may still be required, at a lender’s discretion, but recoveries under these are capped at a maximum of 20% of the outstanding balance of the CBILS facility after the proceeds of business assets have been applied. A Principal Private Residence (PPR) cannot be taken as security to support a personal guarantee or as security for a CBIL backed facility.

Security: For all facilities, including those over £250,000, CBILS can now support lending to smaller businesses even where a lender considers there to be sufficient security, making more smaller businesses eligible to receive the business interruption payment3.

  1. 3 Please note that where there is sufficient security available, it is likely that the lender will take such security in support of a CBILS facility

How to contact us

By phone, email or arrange a meeting

How to get in touch
Email us at [email protected]

Frequently asked questions

The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), delivered through British Business Bank accredited lenders and partners, is designed to support the continued provision of finance to UK smaller businesses (SMEs) during the Covid-19 outbreak. The scheme enables lenders to provide facilities of up to £5m to smaller businesses across the UK who are experiencing lost or deferred revenues, leading to disruptions to their cashflow. Please note that for term loans, the minimum amount we can offer as a lender under CBILS is £50,001.

The British Bank is wholly owned by the Government, independently managed and it does not lend directly. It works with partners who are accredited and LendInvest is such a partner, one of the CBILS lenders, offering support to the UK’s community of SMEs.

The Bridging and Development Finance team at LendInvest has designed this loan to provide facilities of up to £5m to property investors who have suffered revenue interruptions. This loan will provide cashflow needed to complete building refurbishments (including environmental efficiency improvements); start the next project that has been recently paused or to restructure existing finance nearing expiry.

A LendInvest customer who has an existing debt facility with us.

Smaller businesses from all sectors can apply for the full amount of the facility. To be eligible for a facility under CBILS, a smaller business must:

  • be UK based in its business activity, with turnover of no more than £45m per year
  • have a borrowing proposal which, were it not for the current pandemic, would be considered viable by the lender
  • self-certify that it has been adversely impacted by Coronavirus

Businesses from any sector can apply, except the following: Banks, insurers and reinsurers (but not insurance brokers); public-sector bodies; and state-funded primary and secondary schools.

View the British Business Bank CBILS SME Checklist here.

LendInvest will need further information to confirm eligibility for the scheme and will conduct their own assessment.

All lending decisions remain fully delegated to LendInvest as an accredited lender.

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Our CBILS process

Borrower approaches LendInvest for a Property Investor Cashflow Loan.

LendInvest asks the borrower to complete a high level Eligibility assessment. LendInvest assesses the information provided and makes an initial assessment of the borrowers’ eligibility for a CBILS loan. If LendInvest believes the borrower could be eligible then LendInvest asks the borrower to complete a full Application form and the relevant CBILs declarations [Borrower declaration and Personal guarantor declaration].

Once the application documents are provided in full. LendInvest assesses the borrower under the product criteria and undertakes provisional underwriting checks. LendInvest then gives notice to the borrower than it intends to proceed with the application to valuation and issues a pre-valuation letter of offer which includes any special conditions of the CBILS loan.

Borrower pays valuation fee, which will be refundable only upon completion. LendInvest instructs the valuation and, in due course, the valuation report is received.

LendInvest fully underwrites the case, if the case is not declined at this stage, LendInvest then enters the loan application details onto the British Business Bank (BBB) systems, confirms and validates eligibility in the portal and generates a post valuation Letter of Offer including the special conditions of the CBILS loan, a BIP offer letter, plus some additional notification and disclosure documents for the borrower. Note, that during this stage the BBB has the right to refuse the application in which case we would communicate that decision to the borrower.

Both the post valuation Letter of Offer and the BIP offer letter will need to be signed and returned by the borrower. One of the additional documents, the form of information declaration will also be required to be signed by the borrower to confirm that the details of the loan submission are accurate and correct at the time of signing.

The Borrower will need to instruct their own solicitor and also pay an undertaking for the solicitor acting for LendInvest, the fees for the solicitor acting for LendInvest are refundable only upon the completion of the loan.

A loan agreement is then drawn up,including the special conditions of the CBILs loan, signed and agreed, the facility is ready to draw. Upon completion the facility is drawn and the valuation and legal cost refunds are arranged.

The Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) is managed by the British Business Bank on behalf of, and with the financial backing of the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). British Business Bank plc is wholly owned by HM Government and is not authorised or regulated by the Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) or the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). Full details on CBILS and the list of participating CBILS lenders can be found on the British Business Bank website.

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