86% of brokers report strong business levels in H1

The survey, carried out by United Trust Bank, polled intermediaries from the fields of property and asset finance.

25% of respondents rated their business performance to date as ‘excellent’ and a further 61% indicated that their performance was ‘good’. 13% rated their first half of 2017 as ‘poor’ or ‘terrible’.

Brokers were also asked to choose one thing lenders could change which would help their business performance this year. More than a third of brokers (35%) wanted lenders to be more flexible on credit whilst 18% wanted lenders to reduce rates and charges.

Harley Kagan, Group Managing Director of United Trust Bank, commented: “It’s encouraging to see that most brokers are continuing to complete good levels of business regardless of any perceived uncertainty. Many experts predicted that companies would become more cautious and put investment and growth plans on ice pending a clearer picture of what Brexit will look like.

"However, feedback from most brokers suggests that there are still plenty of developers and SMEs seeking help to source funding for growth and acquisitions. It’s easy to forget that most smaller businesses operate in a very local market and as such will feel that the plans they have will be largely unaffected by our eventual relationship with the EU."