Bounce Back Loan Scheme: Bank Services

(asked on 12th April 2021) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether eligibility for the Bounce Back Loan Scheme is dependent on an applicant holding a bank account with a bank that is accredited under that scheme.


Answered by
John Glen Portrait
John Glen
Paymaster General and Minister for the Cabinet Office
This question was answered on 15th April 2021

The Government launched the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) on 4 May 2020 to ensure that the smallest businesses could access loans from £2,000 up to £50,000, capped at 25% of turnover in a matter of just days. As of 21 March, over 1.5 million UK businesses have received Bounce Back Loans worth over £46 billion. Please note the scheme has now closed to new applications.

Whilst the scheme was open, there was no requirement under the scheme rules for borrowers to hold a bank account with an accredited lender to be eligible for a facility. However, decisions on what products were offered to individual businesses were fully delegated to lenders.

Under the scheme rules applicants were required to make a number of declarations to self-certify their eligibility, for example, that they will only use funds solely for the economic benefit of their business. Accredited lenders also carried out anti-fraud, know-your-customer and anti-money laundering checks as part of the application process.

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