BCRS Business Loans has been announced as a fund manager for the Midlands Engine Investment Fund.

Specifically, BCRS will manage the Small Business Loans fund in the West Midlands and will oversee the delivery of £17 million to small and medium sized businesses over the full life of the fund.

Loans will be available from £25,000 to £150,000 for a wide range of projects, including start – up businesses, working capital, expansion projects, leasing commercial premises and asset acquisitions.

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund (MEIF), operated by the British Business Bank, has been established to support start-up and existing businesses in the Midlands that are looking for funding to grow, develop and prosper.

The Midlands Engine Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank. The initiative is also supported by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy as well as ten Local Enterprise Partnerships across the region’s geography.

Patrick Magee, Chief Commercial Officer at the British Business Bank said:

“The Midlands Engine Investment Fund will build relationships with the region’s diverse small business community, through its appointed fund managers and its own relationship managers. MEIF will play a pivotal role in plugging the gaps currently present in the funding landscape, seeking to ensure that all businesses have access to the finance they need to grow.  BCRS will have an instrumental role in the successful allocation of the fund, and we’re looking forward to working with the team to mobilise fast-growth businesses across the region.”

Commenting on the announcement, Paul Kalinauckas, chief executive of BCRS Business Loans, said:

“We are delighted to have won the competitive tender to deliver Small Business Loans across the West Midlands for the Midlands Engine Investment Fund. BCRS Business Loans and the MEIF initiative have a shared passion of liberating small businesses that are unable to access finance from traditional lenders.

“Not only do we believe in what our local SMEs do and meet their needs through a relationship-based approach to lending, but we also have an aim of leaving no viable business unsupported. With robust systems in place and an eighteen-strong team, we are well positioned to meet the targets of this initiative and support even more businesses.”