(13 December 2005 – Australia) St George has launched its Business Umbrella lending product which enables SMEs to change selected loan account credit limits over the internet.Once an overall credit limit has been agreed on with the bank, SME customers can switch between lending options such as business loans, bank guarantees, trade finance facilities and even residentially secured investment loans.
The bank said this was part of a strategy to target SMEs with bundled investment and business products.
St George Institutional & Business Banking head of product and marketing, Janet Anderson, said the Business Umbrella proposition had been designed to meet the needs of SMEs and to help the bank make the most of strong forecast growth in lending to the segment.
She said SMEs wanted their facilities to be as flexible and timely as possible and that the new product achieved this.
“St George’s philosophy is that if our customers’ business grows so does ours. Business Umbrella allows customers to focus on what they do best – build a successful business,” Anderson said.