![f027-01.jpg](https://article-imgs.scribdassets.com/5gsrzrg6m8cf3yzl/images/file93H9U0NH.jpg)
![f027-02.jpg](https://article-imgs.scribdassets.com/5gsrzrg6m8cf3yzl/images/fileOL6WSL76.jpg)
Britain’s small companies are finally beginning to borrow again. Data from UK Finance, a trade association for the banking and financial sector, shows that banks lent £3.5bn to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) during the fourth quarter of 2023, the first quarterly increase for more than a year. But while the pickup suggests small businesses’ confidence may be returning – and that banks