More than half of brokers (54%) are now seeing a rise in appetite from SMEs for external funding, new research published by Atom bank has indicated.

The figure, from Atom’s SME Pulse survey for Q3, represents an uplift of 6% when compared to the Q2 findings (48%).

According to Atom’s findings, 43% of respondents cited rising costs while 36% pointed to growing business confidence, and 18% cited more product options.

Atom suggested the increased appetite for external funding has been evident in the level of enquiries received by firm over the course of the quarter. Atom experienced a 105% increase in the value of quotes requested in Q3 (£1.26bn) and saw a 65% uplift in the number of intermediary firms generating new business enquiries over this period.

In findings which mirrored the SME Pulse data in Q2, most brokers (58%) said they were easily able to access finance on behalf of their clients. However, a large proportion (42%) still stated that they were currently finding it difficult to obtain the finance their clients needed.

When looking for a lender, over a third (37%) of brokers felt that value for money and competitively priced products were the most important feature. Over a quarter (27%) valued ease of doing business and a slick platform over price, while a fifth (20%) said they look for speed of efficiency and quicker time to completion.

Head of intermediary distribution at Atom bank, David Castling, commented: “Despite some lingering economic and market uncertainty, it’s highly encouraging to see that SME’s appetite for external finance is trending upwards, with property purchase and business expansion dominating the reasons for this rising demand.

“On the flip side, we’re still seeing a large chunk of broker respondents struggling to access the type of finance required by their clients, with many stating a lack of appetite from lenders, so this is a figure which must improve across the board.

“As a lender, we are constantly evolving our offering in a bid to increase the number of small businesses we are able to support in the current economic environment. A key part of this is utilising tech efficiency to ensure that we can deliver speed, ease and certainty for our intermediary partners and their clients.”

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