Resources to help your firm deliver advisory services

These articles offer guidance for your clients on how to finance their business, whether they are starting out or growing their business.

• Start up loans for new businesses
• Start up finance
• How to finance your business 
• Financing your growing business

These articles offer guidance on how to access finance.

• Latest ICAEW articles on Accessing Finance
• Advising on net zero will be key to accessing finance

Tasnim Mustafa of Barnes and Scott Chartered Accountants recounts his experience of advising start-up businesses on the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme and Enterprise Investment Scheme.

• Advising on Enterprise Investment Venture Capital Schemes

Business grants are a popular form of funding for companies. As an advisor, you can help your client succeed - and benefit.

• Business grants: how helping your client helps you as an adviser

ICAEW has created an e-money helpsheet to help businesses and their advisers understand whether such accounts are appropriate for their needs.

• Emoney: what you need to know

Helplines and guidance to help advise on business finance.

• Free independent advice for small business employers
• The business finance guide

The end of the tax year provides a simple opportunity to deliver valuable advice to clients and start developing advisory services as a regular feature in your practice.

• Pre year-end tax planning - how to do advisory

Mark McLaughlin, Bloomsbury Professional author, looks at the time limit for damages claims in respect of negligent tax advice and warns that it could be much longer than many practitioners might assume.

• Time limit for negligence claims

There is an enormous amount of interest in cryptocurrency. Increasingly, cryptocurrency is being seen as a hedge against inflation. It is sometimes referred to as “digital gold”.

• Cryptocurrency and taxation

ICAEW has published two guides explaining tax implications of become a sole trader and a limited company.

• Choosing the right business structure: Sole trader or limited company

Individuals who control their own companies can choose how and when to extract profits using a strategy involving various elements.

• Setting salaries for a company owner or managers

Mark McLaughlin, Bloomsbury Accounting and Tax Service, looks at the payment of dividends in owner-managed companies and highlights a recent case on restricted or ‘blocked’ dividends.

• Payment of blocked dividends - a Bloomsbury case study

The articles offer insights into employee ownership as a succession option.

• Increase in founders and owners choosing employee ownership as a succession option
• Employee ownership trusts need-to-know

It’s very difficult to know when to opt for a turnaround, liquidation or company voluntary agreement (CVA). In essence, the decision-making process rests on two critical factors: creditors and cash, and the earlier the decision is made to call in an expert, the better the chance of saving the core business.

• Which button to press: liquidation or turnaround?

Accepting a role for a legal entity or arrangement (e.g., as a company director or a settlement trustee) comes with great responsibility, and certain risks.

• Read the article "Eyes wide open - directorship pitfalls"

Each year ICAEW marks global Cyber Security Awareness month with dedicated resources addressing the latest issues and how to protect your business.

• Visit our Cyber Security Awareness month hub

These articles offer tips on how to advise businesses struggling to cope with rising inflation.

• How businesses can cope with rising inflation
• Forecast to beat the cost of living crisis by Futrli

Some small businesses are ‘bullied’ by bigger customers and feel they have no choice but to accept poor payment and other unfair contractual terms. This article offers guidance on how to advise your client to avoid late or unfair payments.

• Late or unfair payments: Helping clients avoid poor payment practices by their bigger customers

These articles provide key learnings on working with clients in ecommerce.

• Acting for ecommerce clients successfully
• Advising on ecommerce

As companies face increasing scrutiny for their ESG practices, investors and stakeholders are placing more emphasis on how companies address these issues. This might have significant implications for business valuations.

• ESG in valuations: the future is here with ValutECO