El Economista has published an article by José Roca titled “Financing: It’s Time to Explore Alternatives.” The economic magazine has included the opinion of the managing partner of Kaizen Consulting in its Basque Country print edition, as an expert in financing and collaborator with PKF Attest. You can read the full article online at this [link](#).
José Roca’s article begins with the following premise: “The era when traditional banking fully covered the financing needs of companies has ended and will not return. This reality, accelerated by the pandemic, negatively impacts many companies: without alternatives to traditional financing, it is very difficult to achieve the liquidity needed to continue and embark on new projects. Furthermore, successive bank mergers exacerbate the situation, tightening credit conditions and creating uncertainty that paralyzes and complicates decision-making.”
What the managing partner of Kaizen Consulting suggests is the need for companies to explore other options: “Fortunately, there are alternatives, and not only for large companies: suitable solutions also exist for SMEs, which need to open up to them by seeking advice to incorporate new financiers. This could involve more banks in the pool to increase limits or accessing alternative banking, which offers numerous options for obtaining liquidity in an increasingly global market.” Thus, José Roca warns: “Those who do not diversify will be completely dependent on what happens in an increasingly concentrated banking sector with fewer players, and therefore, more restrictive. Lacking alternatives is to self-limit and jeopardize one’s own viability in these economically turbulent times.”
In the text, he analyzes the possibilities offered by alternative banking: “It provides an extremely interesting range of options that traditional banks sometimes do not offer: non-recourse public factoring, unrestricted promoter business, innovation loans, photovoltaic business financing with funds, international guarantees in exotic countries, etc. All these are sufficient to cover the needs of any company (working capital, investment financing, debt refinancing, project financing, or company acquisitions), regardless of its size, situation, or the purpose of the liquidity.” He also emphasizes “novel financial solutions such as rentback and leaseback, which offer good alternatives if accompanied by proper advice. These formulas allow companies to finance themselves with their own resources, monetize the balance sheet by selling virtually any asset of the company, and then leasing it back from the buyer: two ways to free up liquidity from existing equipment and allocate it to priority investments. The generated cash can be used for any purpose and does not appear in CIRBE: these are very flexible operations, specifically designed to meet objectives, and come with a broad range of amounts.”
José Roca also considers other financial solutions, such as debt funds and public aids, highlighting next-generation funds. In conclusion, he recommends “seeking advice to find new financial solutions and tackle the current situation with full knowledge of all alternatives. Maximizing all financing options is essential at this time, and seeking advice will be crucial for the success of SMEs.”