Close Brothers Asset Finance launches free-to-use SME research data hub

Close Brothers Asset Finance has launched a free ‘SME data hub’ containing all its research conducted with Kantar since the start of 2016.

The company, which has been surveying SMEs for over a decade on topics including manufacturing, packaging and engineering, says the decision to make the research publicly available is to provide valuable data to many individuals, from researchers and students to journalists and finance professionals,

Where all research, as well as graphs and tables, is free to access, the firm asks that any use of the data is credited by the user as to its source.

Commenting, Anton Nebbe, Head of PR and Communications at Close Brothers, said: “We were sitting on many years’ worth of research, archiving it once we’d issued our press releases and thought leadership articles.

“But coming from a journalism background myself, I knew there would be ongoing value in making the data freely available without the need to register, and I’m delighted the business agreed with me. 

“I don’t know yet how the SME Data Hub will be used, but my hope is there is something there for everyone given we have the thoughts and opinions of – literally - thousands of business owners and senior members of the SME community dating back over four years, since even before the Brexit vote.” 

The data hub can be accessed here.