Lloyds advising on 1bn business bank Lloyds Banking Group is working with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) on ways to provide long-term financing for mid-sized companies as part of Vince Cable's proposed business bank. A report which Lloyds was involved in putting together on creating capital market funding for medium-sized companies has been well received by BIS. Photo: Alamy The high street lender is working closely with BIS and the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME) on structures likely to sit within the proposed 1bn bank. It is understood a report, which Lloyds was involved in putting together, on creating capital market funding for medium-sized companies has been well received by BIS. It is likely to form one of the key projects of the business bank, more details of which are expected in or around the Chancellor's Autumn Statement on December 5. At the Telegraph Festival of Business in Manchester on Friday, business minister Michael Fallon said mid-sized businesses are the muscles of the UK economy. A report by accountants Grant Thornton for the event found that the productivity gap between British mid-sized companies and their German counterparts was related to the lack of long-term finance and the need for better apprenticeship schemes. The paper looked at the issue of providing liquidity and increasing investor interest in the market, and providing a continuous source of funding through that mechanism.