Financial Guides and Articles
Plain-English guides on business banking, insurance and more.
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What Is Invoice Finance?
Invoice finance lets you release cash tied up in unpaid invoices without waiting for customers to pay. It comes in two main forms, factoring and discounting, each suited to different business types and situations. Here is how to work out which one fits yours.
How to Structure Payment Terms (and avoid disputes before they start)
The best invoice disputes to avoid are the ones you prevent. Two disputes from earlier in my career, and what they taught me about structuring payment terms properly from the start.
How to Resolve an Invoice Dispute
An invoice dispute is different from a late payment. The client is contesting what you are owed, not just delaying it. Here is how to assess the dispute, negotiate a resolution, and know when to escalate.
How to Resolve an Invoice Dispute
An invoice dispute is different from a late payment. The client is contesting what you are owed, not just delaying it. Here is how to assess the dispute, negotiate a resolution, and know when to escalate.
How to Structure Payment Terms (and avoid disputes before they start)
The best invoice disputes to avoid are the ones you prevent. Two disputes from earlier in my career, and what they taught me about structuring payment terms properly from the start.
How to Chase an Unpaid Invoice
Most businesses will deal with an unpaid invoice at some point. Here is how to chase one effectively, what you are legally entitled to charge, and when to escalate.
What Month Two of Starting a Business Actually Looks Like
First hire, first partnership agreement, and the moment a small business got funded through a platform that started as a closed laptop in a home office. Month two is where things got real.
Why Timing Isn't the Whole Story for Startup Finance
James Robson argues the SME finance industry has spent a decade chasing the wrong problem: it's timing, not access. He's right, for established businesses. But for startups and first-year companies with no trading history to time, access is still very much the real issue.
The Comparison Site Now Competing With the Products It Compares
MoneySupermarket has launched its own business bank account. Not a comparison of other banks' accounts. Their own. This is a significant moment for the comparison market, and it raises a question every small business owner should ask before using any comparison site to find a bank account.
What the First Month of Starting a Business Actually Looks Like
Every business starts somewhere. For HowMuch, it started with a browser full of tabs, a growing frustration with how comparison had evolved, and a conviction that small businesses deserved something better. This is month one. What I did, what I got wrong, and what I wish I had known sooner.
My Experience of Making Tax Digital, and What I Would Do Differently
I helped my partner's small e-commerce business through its first Making Tax Digital quarter, and made the process harder than it needed to be. Here is what actually ate the time, the rule nobody warns you about, and what I would automate from day one.
What Do I Need to Set Up a New Business?
Setting up a new business involves more than registering a company and opening a bank account. This guide covers the practical things you actually need to sort, in the order that makes most sense to tackle them.
How to Form a Limited Company in the UK
Forming a limited company in the UK is simpler than most people expect. The online process takes less than a day and costs £100. This guide covers how to do it yourself, when a formation service adds value, and what to sort out once the company is registered.
Do I Need to Register for VAT?
If your taxable turnover has exceeded £90,000 in the last 12 months, yes. If it has not, VAT registration is a choice. This guide explains when the obligation kicks in, when it makes sense to register early, and what registration actually involves.
What Business Insurance Do I Need?
Business insurance is not a single product. It is a collection of different covers, each protecting against a different type of risk. This guide explains which types are legally required, which most businesses need regardless, and how to think through what the right cover looks like for your situation.