A new service from P2P business lending platform ArchOver will provide funds for businesses waiting for their R&D tax claims to be paid.
The Research & Development Advance (RDA) service from ArchOver is the first to be provided by a P2P lender and makes available funding advances of over £100,000. The bridging finance enables organisations to use their pending R&D tax credit, based on two years’ successful claims, to raise funds from ArchOver’s community of lenders.
CEO of ArchOver Angus Dent: “Investment in research and development is crucial not only to individual businesses, but to the wider economy as well. While the government deserves praise for unlocking cash for R&D, the long wait for reimbursement puts this funding out of reach for many of the businesses that stand to benefit most.”
ArchOver explained that only 1.67 per cent of national income is currently being spent on R&D compared to an average of over 2 per cent across the EU. Government initiatives have been put in place to encourage further investment in innovation in the UK. Under the current system, UK businesses can claim cash repayments of up to 33 per cent of their R&D expenditure, but it can take up to six months to receive payment from HMRC.
Dent continued: “ArchOver is committed to unlocking access to capital while providing new opportunities for investors. With the RDA service, businesses no longer
need to worry about having to wait for months to be reimbursed for R&D, which means they can start putting their investment plans into action immediately. That’s great news for individual businesses, and for the UK economy generally.”
