Lloyds Banking Group is set to discontinue its invoice factoring service for small businesses by the end of the year, as reported. Invoice factoring involves a business selling its outstanding invoices to another company at a discounted rate in exchange for immediate cash flow. The purchasing company then takes on the responsibility of collecting the full payment.
According to the report, Lloyds currently buys unpaid invoices from small businesses, but this service will cease this week. The Mirror reached out to Lloyds Banking Group, which comprises Lloyds, Halifax, and Bank of Scotland, for a statement.
The Financial Times disclosed that NatWest and Barclays closed their factoring operations years ago, while HSBC has recently tightened its eligibility criteria for the service.
In other developments this year, Lloyds has made significant changes. Customers can no longer deposit cheques using pay-in slips; instead, they must use their debit card and PIN for deposits. Additionally, the option to deposit cheques at local Post Offices has been eliminated, requiring customers to visit Lloyds, Halifax, or Bank of Scotland branches, or utilize mobile banking for cheque deposits.
Furthermore, Lloyds has raised the monthly fee on its Club Lloyds packaged bank account from £3 to £5 this week. However, the fee is waived if a minimum of £2,000 is deposited monthly. The Club Lloyds account offers various benefits, including a yearly lifestyle benefit choice and access to the Club Lloyds Monthly Saver and cashback at selected retailers. Additional charges apply for Club Lloyds Silver and Club Lloyds Platinum accounts.
Moreover, Lloyds has removed foreign currency fees for debit card transactions in local currencies, though fees may still apply for transactions made in pound sterling.