A NEW partnership has been formed to provide commercial finance to entrepreneurs who want to launch or grow businesses across the Yorkshire region.

The recently-launched Business Catalyst Club has agreed a deal with commercial finance brokers ABL Business, based in Cleckheaton, to create Business Catalyst Finance.

The partnership will complement the equity and venture capital activities of the Business Catalyst Club by providing access to a broad range of funding options such as commercial property finance, business loans and venture capital along with alternative finance opportunities like asset-based lending and peer-to-peer lending.

The “dealmaker” Business Catalyst Club was recently launched to promote business growth by creating beneficial relationships, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors and decision-makers from across the region to share new and exciting opportunities.

Their invitation-only quarterly lunches create an effective platform for a select number of ventures seeking capital to showcase their proposals to members and guests. Proposals are considered from start-ups to more established trading businesses.

The new collaboration follows the organisation’s first event held at Manahatta Greek Street, in Leeds.

Business Catalyst Club founder and director Graham Shiers said: “We had an overwhelming response to the launch. We have hit the ground running and are already helping to bring some imaginative opportunities to fruition.

“We now want to add even more value by broadening the way we help entrepreneurs to source funding for their projects alongside our role in facilitating the right commercial and professional introductions. As well as enabling opportunities through Venture Capital, Business Angels and other investors, we can now help people access commercial finance support from over 120 lenders available through our ABL Business partners”.

Joint Managing Director of ABL Business, Andy Redman, said: “We were delighted to attend the first Business Catalyst Club lunch which brought together key players from across the region, representing a whole range of sectors.

“The event was truly inspirational. We were already impressed with what Graham is doing and had felt inspired to get involved on a much deeper level. By joining forces, we will be able to reach out to the Business Catalyst Club’s extensive network of contacts and we’re eager to play our part in turning some great projects into reality”.

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