Big firms can’t use you as a bank anymore

As Small Business Commissioner, my mission is to make Britain the best place in the world to launch, run and scale a business.

For years, too many corporations have treated independent startups as a rounding error; stretching out terms, sitting on invoices, and effectively borrowing their money interest-free.

This week, we got the hard data showing that’s finally about to change.

We’re passing the strictest laws in the G7

The Enterprise Research Centre just dropped a groundbreaking report comparing payment laws across 20 global jurisdictions. 

It shows that the UK’s upcoming Commercial Payments Bill goes further than anything currently seen in the G7, the EU, or beyond.

While we have seen progress at our office through voluntary codes and industry transparency, it’s just not enough. As every founder already knows: politeness alone does not pay the bills. And that’s why this legislation is so important. 

When countries rely solely on voluntary approaches or civil courts, small firms routinely remain silent for fear of damaging the commercial relationship and their reputations. Some larger companies know this, and they exploit it.

The rules are mandatory, and we’ll enforce them

The report looked at laws and practices that actually work globally, and two models stand out:

• Japan: Proactive government enforcement slashed late payments from 25% down to 12%.
• The Netherlands: A strict 30-day cap when big companies pay small suppliers helped them achieve the lowest rate of late payments in the EU.

What do these success stories prove? Only mandatory caps backed by aggressive, proactive enforcement actually change corporate behaviour at scale.

That is exactly why the new UK legislation combines a hard 60-day payment cap, non-waivable interest penalties, and a heavily empowered Small Business Commissioner. It will be the most comprehensive framework in the world.

Knowing we have the right blueprint is great news. Now, it is time to stop talking and start delivering.

This content is contributed by a guest author. Startups.co.uk / MVF does not endorse or take responsibility for any views, advice, analysis or claims made within this post.