Bridges and fixes solve different problems. Confusing them is how companies borrow their way from a cash-flow gap into a solvency crisis.
A bridge spans a known gap
A short bridge — a payment arrangement, an extension, a short facility — carries you across a defined, temporary gap to a point where the numbers work again. It assumes there is solid ground on the far side.
A fix repairs the ground itself
If the business model no longer works — costs above prices, revenue structurally down — no bridge will help, because there is nothing solid to bridge to. That needs a fix: repricing, restructuring, reinventing.
Diagnose before you fund
Before using any finance in difficulty, be honest about whether you are bridging a gap or papering over a hole. Get advice if you are not sure — it is the most important call you will make.
For a genuine gap, talk to us about a bridge; for a hole, fix the business first.
We lend only to UK limited companies and LLPs, and the loan is to the company with no director personal guarantee. As business finance outside the consumer-credit regime, it is not covered by the Financial Ombudsman Service or FSCS.
See also: How short-term finance can bridge a temporary cashflow gap, Using short-term finance responsibly in a squeeze, The difference between a cost problem and a revenue problem.