Nine out of 10 businesses are halting growth plans because of problems accessing capital.
A survey of 500 mid-sized businesses by BDO, the business advisory and accountancy firm, found that almost a quarter are planning to scale back expansion or make redundancies.
More than half cited inflation and increasing operating costs as the biggest challenges in the next six months.
As a result, 40% say they will have to find new sources of funding, with a further 33% saying that will be the case in the next 18 months. Private equity is seen as the most likely source, with 32%, while equity capital markets will be tapped by 28% and government schemes by 25%.
