BBA launches banking code
The British Bankers' Association has launched a 'banking code' to support small businesses in their dealings with banks.
The aim is to provide transparent industry standards. It will offer advice on standards of service, individual products and dealing with financial difficulty, and will be launched on 31 March. Ian Mullen, chief executive of the BBA, said: ‘While banks have often been criticised for their lack of transparency to business customers, our research shows that this often arises through basic misunderstanding. The Business Banking Code aims to help overcome the problems customers have experienced in the past.’
- The Better Payment Practice Group has issued new guidance advising businesses that they could get ‘improved payment performance’ from their customers if they put together a strategy that identifies and sets realistic collection targets. According to the group, businesses should target their major customers and communicate credit terms clearly. They should also work to achieve a ‘specific days sales outstanding ratio’, which measures total debtors against total sales made.
- Recovery in the service sector is continuing, according to new monthly figures from the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply. Its business activity index recorded 52.1 for February, up from 51.4 in January. The rate of expansion of activity was the strongest since last June and represents a significant turnaround from the falling levels of activity seen in the final four months of 2001, the CIPS said.
