₦airaland Forum

There are times in the life of your business when mainstream finance options like loans and credits will be inadequate for your needs or beyond your reach. One option that may be available to you at a time like this is to consider accounts receivable financing as an alternative way of getting the cash that you need to run your business.

What, you may ask, is accounts receivable financing? Sometimes referred to as factoring, accounts receivable financing may be simply defined as a process whereby you sell the outstanding invoices for products or services already delivered by your business (otherwise known as receivables) to a financial institution (bank, finance house, etc.) at a price that is lower than the value of the invoices.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-to-turn-your-slow-invoices-to-cash/

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in pursuit of its objective of promoting economic development, in recognition of the significant contributions that Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are making to the growth of the economy, has been launching a growing range of initiatives aimed at addressing the financing gap in this sub-sector.

The CBN, in line with its pivotal role in the nation’s financial ecosystem, launched the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) on August 15, 2013 with a share capital of N220 billion. The Fund aims to enhance the access of MSMEs to financial services, by channelling single-digit loans at Nine percent interest rate to them, through the Primary Finance Institutions (PFIs).

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/cbn-and-msme-funding-so-much-motion-so-little-movement/

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), in pursuit of its objective of promoting economic development, in recognition of the significant contributions that Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are making to the growth of the economy, has been launching a growing range of initiatives aimed at addressing the financing gap in this sub-sector.

The CBN, in line with its pivotal role in the nation’s financial ecosystem, launched the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) on August 15, 2013 with a share capital of N220 billion. The Fund aims to enhance the access of MSMEs to financial services, by channelling single-digit loans at Nine percent interest rate to them, through the Primary Finance Institutions (PFIs).

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/cbn-and-msme-funding-so-much-motion-so-little-movement/

Dear Small Business Owner,

Do You Need A Quick Loan Of N4m?

Are you a small business owner? Do you need a quick loan to run your business?

Renmoney, a leading financial technology lending company, is willing, ready and able to advance N4,000,000 to your business at a single-digit rate of two (2) percent.

The Chief Executive Officer of Renmoney, Oluwatobi Boshoro, says: “We have tested and iterated this product extensively for almost six months, reviewed over thirty thousand applications and issued over six thousand loans. We are convinced that this product will go a long way in making financial inclusion meaningful for business owners.”

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-to-access-n4000000-quick-loan-and-much-more/

08107280188

Dear Small Business Owner,

Do You Need A Quick Loan Of N4m?

Are you a small business owner? Do you need a quick loan to run your business?

Renmoney, a leading financial technology lending company, is willing, ready and able to advance N4,000,000 to your business at a single-digit rate of two (2) percent.

The Chief Executive Officer of Renmoney, Oluwatobi Boshoro, says: “We have tested and iterated this product extensively for almost six months, reviewed over thirty thousand applications and issued over six thousand loans. We are convinced that this product will go a long way in making financial inclusion meaningful for business owners.”

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-to-access-n4000000-quick-loan-and-much-more/

Dear Small Business Owner,

Do You Need A Quick Loan Of N4m?

Are you a small business owner? Do you need a quick loan to run your business?

Renmoney, a leading financial technology lending company, is willing, ready and able to advance N4,000,000 to your business at a single-digit rate of two (2) percent.

The Chief Executive Officer of Renmoney, Oluwatobi Boshoro, says: “We have tested and iterated this product extensively for almost six months, reviewed over thirty thousand applications and issued over six thousand loans. We are convinced that this product will go a long way in making financial inclusion meaningful for business owners.”

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-to-access-n4000000-quick-loan-and-much-more/

1. Your Business Coach Clarifies Your Vision. An entrepreneur is often caught in flights of fancy, mesmerised by shiny objects and prone to the siren influence. With many brilliant ideas floating in his or her head, the entrepreneur starts one idea today and drops it the next day, and produces motions without movements.

Your business coach, seeing your fits and starts, will make sure you have your feet on the ground while your head is in the sky. He or she will teach you how to bring your idea(s) to life. He or she will help you crystalise the goal of making your idea a reality. He or she will assess your plans, evaluate what is realistic, and steer you towards an action plan on where to start and what to tackle first.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/what-can-a-coach-do-for-you-and-your-business-a-lot/

1. Separate Receivable Payments from Borrowed Loans

One of the most critical errors that can be made in bookkeeping is to confuse money received from clients with borrowed funds. Apart from both being cash that the business can use for operations, they have an entirely different effect on your bottom line. This is why it is a good idea to treat them as different accounts to avoid confusion that has the potential to turn into a financial crisis. Using the accounting software that can separate the two will make keeping track of both transactions easier.

2. Treat Your Checks Like Cash
Checks have the same function as cash but some business owners still make the error of losing track of each check they write. Even your canceled checks have the potential to create serious errors in your books so it is important to document them well. The easiest way to solve this problem is to have a system in place to process and record your checks. The simple task of documenting and filing will overwhelm you if you wait for checks to pile up. Ensure you record them as you go, and it won’t cause you any problems in the future.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/essential-bookkeeping-tips-for-small-businesses/

There is no gainsaying the fact that the Nigerian banking industry is
experiencing an acute shortage of liquidity. At a time Nigeria is bearing the dubious distinction of having the highest cost of borrowing in Sub Sahara Africa, small business owners who manage to borrow money from banks that are also struggling to find money, do so at very high costs.

According to the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Nigerian
manufacturers paid an average interest rate of 22.9 percent during the
first six months of 2018.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/looking-for-business-loan-at-nine-percent-check-out-zenith-bank/

I'm interested Please add me up
08107280188

Question: I heard that Union Bank of Nigeria recently launched its Tech Ventures Programme to support the development of technology businesses. What is the programme about and how can a business access it?

Ademola Osinuga, Ibadan

Answer: The Union Bank of Nigeria Tech Ventures Programme is set up to support new technology businesses, by assisting them to start, scale or grow their businesses.

Depending on its stage of growth, the programme offers technology-based businesses one of three options, namely:

Click on the link to read the full articles[url] https://smefinance.org/i-heard-that-union-bank-of-nigeria-recently-launched-its-tech-ventures-programme-to-support-the-development-of-technology-businesses-what-is-the-programme-about-and-how-can-a-business-access-it/[/url]

The recent decision of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers’ Committee to transform the comatose Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) into a National Microfinance Bank calls for an urgent rethink.

The Governor of the Central Bank and Chairman of the Bankers’ Committee, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, gave three reasons for the decision: Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/cbns-microfinance-bank-right-reasoning-wrong-decision/

An entrepreneur is a person who takes on the financial risk of setting up a business, in the hope of making a profit. An entrepreneur is like a farmer, who understands that before you can harvest corn from your farm, you must first plant the seeds, nurture them and wait for a period of maturing, before you can look forward to harvest time.

A wise entrepreneur knows that, just as the farmer must ripen his fruits by degrees and cannot sow and reap at once, he or she cannot start a business today, and start making money tomorrow.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/entrepreneurial-patience-how-to-become-an-overnight-success/

Question: How Do I Upgrade From Business Name To Limited Liability Company?

Ohi Igbinoba, Benin City

Answer: Entities that wish to convert from Business Name to Limited Liability Company have the option of dissolving the Business Name and registering the same name as a Limited Liability Company. The problem, however, is that the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) cannot guarantee that the same name would be approved for the purpose of incorporating a limited liability company.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-do-i-upgrade-from-business-name-to-limited-liability-company/

08107280188

The average business owner who wants to start a new business is faced with the challenge of raising capital. Beyond personal savings, this search for money to invest in a business idea leads to friends, family, angel investors and venture capitalists.

When these sources are not forthcoming or do not amount to much, the search extends to business loans, possibly from banks. However, it is near impossible for a bank to fund a start-up. The start-up does not have a credit standing. It will be asked to provide collateral to secure the credit. It will be requested to present business projections showing how it will make money and how the bank will be re-paid. Its chance of securing bank finance is severely limited if it cannot meet these requirements in support its loan application. Because the bank, which is not a risk-taker, expects to recover its money, principal plus interest.

The frenzy surrounding start-ups looking for money makes it seem like that is the only way to finance a new business. Certainly not.

Instead of spending your time trying to raise money from friends, family, angel investors, venture capitalists, banks, etc., bootstrapping may be your best solution.

Click here on the to read the full article https://smefinance.org/bootstrapping-101-start-on-a-shoe-string-and-raise-cash-later/

Gross margin, usually expressed in percentage terms, is the financial ratio that compares revenue and direct costs. Gross margin is what you get when you deduct direct costs from income. It is closely with the mark-up on cost price, meaning that a business with a high gross margin is likely to make more money than a business that is barely covering its costs.

Read the full article here https://smefinance.org/what-is-the-difference-between-gross-margin-and-return-on-investment/

One of the qualities of high growth businesses is their strong focus on marketing. They regularly and continuously execute their marketing plans. It also follows that many businesses struggle because they don’t have marketing plans or execute them randomly.

Marketing is a master skill in business. If you are serious about the success of your business, you must take decisive action to transform yourself from simply being a business owner to becoming a marketer who owns a business.

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How do you achieve this shift? Here are eight simple ideas you need to understand, and act on:

Click the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/transit-from-business-owner-to-chief-marketer/

It is possible that you are one of those business owners who believe that your experience as an entrepreneur is different from those of other people who are striving to start, grow or scale their businesses. This kind of thinking is not exactly according to the facts. The truth is that ‘entrepreneuring’ is far more predictable than many business owners will admit. Even more true is that there are some common problems and frustrations that you encounter along the way, just as there are certain proven ways of overcoming them.

Now, let’s get started. Where are you in your climb on the entrepreneurial ladder? Where are you heading? What stands between where you are and where you want to be? What do you need to do to step onto the next rung of the ladder and inch your way toward arriving at your destination?

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/where-are-you-in-your-life-as-an-entrepreneur/

Question: Is there a way I can test and validate my start-up idea without spending big money?

Ibrahim Yusuf, Kano


Answer: Validation is a very important step in deciding to introduce a product or service into the market. Validation is far more important than design, features, price, or how much you would need to launch, or the need to start assembling your team.

What, then, can you do to avoid delivering a product or service that no one will pay for? Here is a simple framework:

Articulate The Problem: Write out the problem in the form of a simple statement. Define and refine the problem your product or service wishes to solve. Clarify it. Express it in one sentence.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/is-there-a-way-i-can-test-and-validate-my-start-up-idea-without-spending-big-money

Why do you want to own a business? There are various reasons why you may want to start and run your own business.

You want to be your own boss rather than be an employee. You are tired of people telling you what to do. You want to have choices. You want to be the one to decide what to do.


You have a dream and want to put energy into building it. You want to move from helping to build other peoples’ pet projects to fleshing and shaping out your own dream. You want to build something to call your own.

You are close to retiring, or already retired, and want to own a business which will give you a more flexible lifestyle that lets you keep busy while doing something satisfying.

You have an idea that might change the world, or a piece of it, for the better. You think you, too, can make a worthwhile effort and be an agent of change. You want to give it a shot.


You want to make more money, quickly, and much more than you can make as an employee.

It is clear from the foregoing that there are various reasons why people veer into the path of business ownership.

From the lure of striking out on your own, through the desire to build your own business instead of someone else’s, to the chance to change the world, launching a business remains an attraction. The benefits of owning your business clearly outweigh those of being an employee. As an employee, you are not likely to have a direct share in the profits of the business, and businesses generally have more opportunities to make money than individuals do.

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/on-being-a-business-owner-realities-and-illusions/

What is a business plan? A business plan is a planning document which summarises the operational and financial objectives of a business. It contains detailed plans and budgets showing how the business will pursue and realise its set goals.

Why do you need a business plan for your business? A business plan is a vital first step for anyone starting a business. It is the due diligence needed to prevent you from wasting time and money on a business idea that might not work. If you have a business idea, you need a business plan to determine if it will make money, since you would not want to start a business when you are not sure that it has a good chance of being profitable.

Your business plan will help you to secure the buy-in of the people who will work with you in the business, particularly members of your senior management. Your business plan will help you to convince potential investors that your business is likely to succeed. Your business plan will show the capacity of your business if you need to borrow money from a lending institution.

Your business plan is your tool for thinking through the key elements of your business and serves as the roadmap for starting, growing and scaling your business. It guides you through every stage of your business. It is the foundation for your business.

How do you write your business plan? Here is a step by step outline you can use to write your business plan, with a listing of the key sections and essential components of the plan:

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/how-to-write-your-business-plan/

Question: I am a fresh graduate with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, and just completed my National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). I am planning to start a small business. What support can I get from the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN)?

Answer: The Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) exists to support aspiring Small Business Owners. Its services are as follows:

Click on the link to read the full article https://smefinance.org/what-support-can-i-get-from-the-small-and-medium-enterprises-development-agency-of-nigeria-smedan/

It is widely proclaimed, and generally believed, that access to finance is the biggest single problem facing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria. Many experts cite the counter narrative that shortage of technical know-how, executive capacity and limited market opportunities are far bigger obstacles to entrepreneurial success.

Be that as it may, the Federal Government remains unrelenting in its search for solutions to the financial problems of Small Business Owners and Independent Professionals. It has a growing range of policies and programmes that seek to provide debt and equity support for new entrepreneurs through access to soft loans.

In pursuit of this objective, in furtherance of his campaign for re-election in 2019 for a second term of four years, President Muhammadu Buhari recently said his administration will establish an Entrepreneurs Bank which will offer cheap funds for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

This plan raises one question: Is a new bank for entrepreneurs the answer to the problem of financing small businesses in Nigeria?

The track record of institutions created for the same reason and purpose suggest otherwise.

Nigeria now has not fewer than three development finance institutions, each specially set up for the sole purpose of lending investible monies to entrepreneurs. Fully or partly owned and funded by the Federal Government, they include the following:

1. Bank of Industry, currently Nigeria’s leading development Bank, focuses on lending to such industrial and value-adding sectors as manufacturing, agro-processing and entertainment. It extends credit to entrepreneurs at about Nine percent interest rate.

Click on https://smefinance.org/buharis-proposed-entrepreneurs-bank-one-bank-too-many/ to read more

It is widely proclaimed, and generally believed, that access to finance is the biggest single problem facing Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria. Many experts cite the counter narrative that shortage of technical know-how, executive capacity and limited market opportunities are far bigger obstacles to entrepreneurial success.

Be that as it may, the Federal Government remains unrelenting in its search for solutions to the financial problems of Small Business Owners and Independent Professionals. It has a growing range of policies and programmes that seek to provide debt and equity support for new entrepreneurs through access to soft loans.

In pursuit of this objective, in furtherance of his campaign for re-election in 2019 for a second term of four years, President Muhammadu Buhari recently said his administration will establish an Entrepreneurs Bank which will offer cheap funds for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises.

This plan raises one question: Is a new bank for entrepreneurs the answer to the problem of financing small businesses in Nigeria?

The track record of institutions created for the same reason and purpose suggest otherwise.

Nigeria now has not fewer than three development finance institutions, each specially set up for the sole purpose of lending investible monies to entrepreneurs. Fully or partly owned and funded by the Federal Government, they include the following:

1. Bank of Industry, currently Nigeria’s leading development Bank, focuses on lending to such industrial and value-adding sectors as manufacturing, agro-processing and entertainment. It extends credit to entrepreneurs at about Nine percent interest rate.

Click on https://smefinance.org/buharis-proposed-entrepreneurs-bank-one-bank-too-many/ to read more