C2FO Survey Finds 75 Percent of Small to Mid-Sized Companies Lack Enough Cash for the Next Six Months

A new economic survey of small to mid-sized companies in the United States finds that a majority of them share a negative outlook about their business prospects and access to working capital over the next six months.

C2FO, the world’s largest non-bank provider of working capital to small and mid-sized businesses, reports that more than 500 companies responded to the survey between March 30 and April 15.

Key findings from the survey, which asked for companies to share their outlooks for the next six months, include:

• 75% of businesses had a negative outlook when asked if they have enough working capital reserves. Only 6% said they felt positive about their reserves.

• 52% had negative expectations about being able to access the capital they need over the next six months.

• 65% had an overall negative business outlook. Only 18% had a positive outlook.

• 47% responded negatively about future staffing plans. Only 5% expected positive staffing changes.

Responses to the economic survey indicate that the smallest companies are being hit the hardest by the economic crisis. Among businesses with 10 or fewer employees, 83% expect a significant decline in working capital reserves and 66% believe they will have access to less working capital in the coming months. For companies with 100 or more employees, 44% expect to have depleted working capital reserves and 24% expect a decline in working capital access.

Governments and central banks have taken steps to provide more capital to small and mid-sized businesses, but those efforts alone are not enough. C2FO has called for more aggressive measures to provide immediate relief to companies worldwide that are in desperate need of working capital.

In an open letter published on April 8 in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post and the Financial Times, C2FO Founder and CEO Alexander “Sandy” Kemper, proposed the creation of a Small Business Supplier Protection Plan that would provide low-cost funding to Fortune 1000 companies to pay their small and mid-sized suppliers immediately. This plan could inject up to $580 billion of immediate relief into the U.S. economy for small businesses and the more than 60 million employees they sustain.

“In this economic crisis, the greatest financial relief we can give small and mid-sized businesses is faster payment of their outstanding invoices,” Kemper wrote. “The government and banks have stepped in with emergency lending, but much work remains to address the full needs of small and mid-sized businesses. If implemented quickly, we believe this solution could solve a significant part of the crisis for millions of businesses in need of capital in the U.S.”

C2FO is asking business owners and individuals to reach out to their elected officials to share details of the plan today. To read more about this proposal, please visit the C2FO website.

About C2FO

C2FO is working to deliver a future where every company in the world has the capital needed to grow. Our online platform matches more than $1 trillion of accounts payable and accounts receivable. Through this and our suite of innovative financial products, we connect businesses with the cash they need. Name your rate, and the C2FO platform will match your capital request with the available funds in seconds. Cash flow comes through early payment of invoices by your customers, A/R financing, and other data-driven funding options. C2FO is the world’s largest non-bank provider of working capital, serving over 1 million customers representing $10.5 trillion in annual sales across more than 180 countries. To learn more, visit C2FO.com.

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