Asset-based finance is set to grow by 9% in 2012, a new survey from the UK’s Asset Based Finance Association (ABFA) said. Total funding provided by the industry to UK and Ireland firms is forecast to reach £17.2 billion in 2012.

The new survey is the first time the ABFA has asked its members to predict industry growth figures for the following year. The survey forecasts that turnover from companies using asset-based finance in 2012 will hit £259 billion, up 12% from £235 billion in 2011.

The popularity of the industry among UK and Ireland firms looks set to continue with the number of clients using invoice finance and asset-based lending expected to increase by 7% to peak at 44,412.

The ABFA’s members are pessimistic though about the state of the UK’s economy, predicting it will not pick up in 2012, with 92% of members expecting conditions to remain unchanged throughout the whole of this year. A further 5% are even forecasting the economy to worsen in 2012.

Kate Sharp, chief executive of the Asset Based Finance Association, said: “The results underpin the confidence which the industry sees in the popularity of asset based finance. As other forms of finance become harder to secure, the industry is predicting a strong 9% growth rate in total funding as firms look to secure the capital they need. But this confidence clearly doesn’t extend to the wider economy, with members not predicting much more than minimal growth throughout 2012.”