SME borrowing costs remain high despite government scheme Small businesses are paying more to borrow than a year ago, despite the launch in March of the Government's credit easing scheme, according to new figures. The average interest rate on a loan to small and medium-sized businesses stood at 3.71pc at the end of April, just 0.08pc lower than the previous month when the scheme was launched and 0.09pc higher than it was 12 months ago. The figures, from finance industry services company Syscap, cast doubt on the ability of the National Loan Guarantee Scheme to cut interest rates for smaller businesses by a significant amount. The NLGS was started in March and is expected to see the state underwrite up to £20bn of low-cost lending to help small businesses get the loans they need. "The NLGS has not yet had the hoped-for impact on borrowing costs for small businesses as a whole," said Philip White, chief executive of Syscap. He added that it was "difficult to identify any positive changes" from the scheme.