· Looking to Get Capital Out of the Business tax efficiently?

You may be in a situation where the business is well established and you are now making significant profits.

The key factor now is how to get your profits out of the business and pay the least amount of tax you can.

The next step is to talk to a financial adviser to clarify the need and he/she can quantify the cost for you. Then you will want to balance the cost of protection versus the risk, before you take any action.

· Looking to Protect Directors or Share Holders?

You may already have an idea of cover that you need or your bank may have suggested/insisted that you have cover. However, given the cost, you must surely be asking "How much cover should I have?"

A good place to start is to identify the risk and then try to quantify it; consider some of the following questions:

· What is the risk:

o That you or one of your key directors will be seriously ill, and therefore be unable to work.

o That you might die suddenly and leave the mortgage unpaid?
· Quantify the risk. Would a lump sum satisfy the need, or an income?

o How much is needed?
· How long will the firm be vulnerable?
· Is there a debt that would need to be cleared e.g. a mortgage or bank

If looking at the shareholders you can protect against one dying and leaving all the shares in the hands of a spouse who may need cash and therefore look to sell to the highest bidder.

You can protect against this by putting in place share Protection Cover.

· How much are the shares worth?

· If a payout is made, who do you want to receive it?

o Who should have control?

o When and how do you want the benefits delivered?

If you can answer some of these questions, then it puts you in a good position to sit down and discuss the matter with a financial adviser.

Sometimes you may decide that there is no financial risk and no action is needed.

More often, you will see clearly where you need to put cover in place.

The next step is to talk to a financial adviser to clarify the need and he/she can quantify the cost for you. Then you will want to balance the cost of protection versus the risk, before you take any action.

· Looking to Grow the Business?

Growing a business usually means that you need more resources: more staff and more capital.

Obviously, you'll want better staff as well as more staff. At the same time you'll want the staff to stay for longer so as to make the average cost of recruiting them lower.

If you are looking to grow then you will almost inevitably need to offer your new and existing staff more than just a salary. A "Benefits Package" and the service that goes with this is a key part of giving you the edge in the employment market.

More capital can be obtained in a number of ways: -

o You can borrow against appropriate assets

o You can use your own assets a Directors pension scheme to invest in or lend money to the firm in order to raise capital for certain projects

o You can obtain venture capital from independent sources. On either a debt or equity basis

Look into our Commercial Finance and Self Administered Pension sections and see how we can assist.

· Starting a business

Your new business may be your first or one of many. In either case it is important to make sure that it is set up correctly right from the start.

If you're borrowing money or using outside investments then it will be sensible to ensure the key players are fully insured so that if they can't work, that there are contingency funds available to the business.

It is also important to consider you and your own family's well being. To this end you should ensure that right from the start your cash flow includes at least a basic level of income protection, life assurance and pension. If you are going to throw your all into the business you should ensure that it at least looks after you!

If you look in to the sections below, the you should get a basic idea of what to do and how we can help in each area.

· Moving to new premises

Moving premises can be financed in a number of ways: -

o You can borrow against the new building

o If you are keeping the old premises, then you can use the existing building to finance the new purchase or the two premises together.

o You can use your own assets in a Directors pension scheme to invest in or lend money to the firm in order to raise capital for certain projects

Look into our Commercial Finance and Self Administered Pension sections and see how we can assist.

Whether you are a company, individual or financial professional, please contact us now on 0207 229 1615 or email us at info@modernmoney.co.uk for the best advice available on investments, pensions, insurance protection and mortgages.