Designed for non-VAT registered businesses, we'll do your bank reconciling so you can relax knowing it's done right, and on time.

Bank reconciliation - non-VAT registered companies

A 12-month plan designed for new business owners who may want some extra guidance around business structure, accounting software setup and training, and more.

We will provide you with guidance and support on what you'll need to do to establish and commence running your new business

We can provide advice on the best business structure for your needs and take care of establishment and registrations

Set up your Xero file so it's optimised for you and give you initial training so you start off in the right way

Preparation of a budget tailored to your business and input into Xero so you can track how you're going

Starter Pack

We will help get your business officially incorporated

Company formation

Designed for sole trader businesses, we'll do your bank reconciling so you can relax knowing it's done right, and on time. Take one less task off your plate.

Bank reconciliation - sole trader businesses

A 12 month plan designed for established businesses. Additional support in the form of management accounts and time with your accountant

Completing quarterly management accounts tailored to your business requirements and aligned to your VAT quarters

Quarterly meetings with your accountant to chat business planning, strategy, or questions about your management accounts

Success pack

The initial setup of your Xero accounting software tailored to your business's needs, plus a one hour training session where you'll learn the best practices for bookkeeping and financial tracking.

Xero setup & training

We prepare your quarterly VAT returns ready for you to review and pay.

Prepare VAT

Learn the key causes of profit erosion and how to optimise for sustainable business growth.

Discover why increasing revenue doesn't always lead to profit growth. Learn the key causes of profit erosion and how to optimise for sustainable business growth.

Why growing revenue isn't the same as growing profit

Many business owners assume that growing revenue automatically means profit will grow at the same rate. More customers, more sales, more money. The logic makes sense but it’s not always the case.

It can often feel frustrating. You're working harder, revenue is climbing, and things seem like they're going really well, but your bottom line doesn't reflect that.

This is because revenue and profit are two very different metrics. A business can generate significantly more revenue and still see profit stagnate, shrink or even disappear entirely. Beneath the surface of revenue growth are often inefficiencies or other problems that quietly erode profit margins. When this happens, the business ends up in a weaker financial position even though it seems more successful from a revenue perspective.


What causes the gap between revenue growth and profit growth

When revenue increases but profit doesn’t keep pace, it usually comes down to one or more of the following:

Software and subscription costs that accumulate from needing additional software or user licenses

An increase in the cost of delivering your product/service

Rising customer acquisition costs from expanded advertising, market saturation or less efficient channels

Pricing not keeping pace with rising costs

Heavy discounting that generates sales volume but lowers profit margin per sale

Internal processes that haven’t scaled efficiently

Capacity constraints when demand exceeds what existing systems can handle

Extra admin and support burdens that can come from having more customers

Payroll growing at a faster rate than revenue

Taking on clients or projects that cost more to serve (i.e. more revisions, customisation, or support than your average customer)

Growth weighted towards lower-margin products or services rather than higher-margin ones

Increased product returns and refunds that add processing and admin costs

When a business is growing fast, it's easy for a few of these to compound at the same time. Sales are coming in and the product or service needs to be delivered, but the processes and costs behind it are under pressure to keep up. The combination of these pressures is often what creates the gap between revenue growth and profit growth.

They ramped up their advertising spend and offered frequent promotional discounts. Their sales volume climbed, resulting in revenue growing from £1,000,000 to £2,000,000. However, the extra volume pushed up fulfilment costs and return rates. The profit made was £140,000.

They reviewed their product mix, discontinued two low-margin lines, and streamlined the delivery process to cut out a step that was adding extra admin time to every job. Their revenue remained steady at £1,000,000 but the improvements to product mix and operations led to better overall margins. The profit made was £220,000.

Business A looks twice the size on paper, but Business B is the more profitable one. Business A retains 7 pence from every pound of sales, where Business B retains 22 pence from every pound of sales.

Business growth should always aim to improve your financial strength rather than just making you (and your team) busier. 

At a minimum, revenue and profit should grow at the same rate, so if revenue grows 5%, net profit also grows 5%. In a well-optimised business, profit should actually grow faster than revenue, so if revenue grows 5%, net profit might grow 7-8%. This is because the business is set up for sustainable growth which allows revenue to increase without negatively impacting margins.

To optimise your business for sustainable growth:

Build scalable systems and operating procedures that work well today and will easily hold up at double your current size

Track profitability by product, service or client type so you can focus on growth that’s actually worth having

Set strict boundaries around discounting and scope creep to protect net returns on every job/sale

Audit recurring costs quarterly or every six months (especially software subscriptions which are notorious for cost creep)


If you’re not sure where to start, your Beany accountant can help you understand what’s driving your profit and where your costs are creeping up. If you’re not working with an accountant or looking for a new one, get in touch with us for a free chat about how we can help support your business.

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Why growing revenue is not the same as growing profit

Financial literacy

Businesses overpay on software by up to 30%. Uncover your hidden SaaS subscription costs and boost your net profit.

ADVISORY  •  26 AUGUST 2026  •  4 MIN READ

Overpaying for unused software seats or forgotten tools? Learn how to identify hidden subscription costs and boost your net profit without growing revenue.

5 hidden SaaS subscriptions draining your business profit margin

You don't always need to grow revenue to grow profit. Sometimes the fastest win is finding the money you're already losing.

Software is an expense line that is supposed to make businesses more efficient. However, many businesses experience what we call SaaS bleed, where recurring software charges eat into profit margin without anyone noticing. 

Studies show that the average business overpays on software by as much as 30% thanks to unused seats, redundant tools and missed cancellation windows. The good news is that unlike most cost-cutting, this one doesn’t often require a painful trade-off. It just requires a closer look at where your subscription dollars are actually going. 

Here are 5 types of SaaS subscriptions where unnecessary cost is hidden and what to do about each one.

Tools that charge per user can look affordable at the start, but the cost multiplies as teams grow, roles change and employees leave.

Wasted spend usually happens in two ways. Someone is given full paid access when guest-level permissions would have done the job, or a former employee or contractor’s account stays active for months (sometimes years) after they’ve left. Either way, you’re paying for a user/seat that nobody’s using.

To stop paying for unused seats, implement a strict IT offboarding process that revokes licenses or archives accounts the moment someone leaves. While this won’t capture cost leakage related to team who’ve swapped roles or users who’re no longer using a particular tool, this will at least put a stop to paying for seats of departing team members.

Some software plans come with user, volume or usage thresholds that trigger significant automatic price increases once you cross them. The frustrating part is that this often happens through normal everyday growth. For example, a contact list expands from marketing activity, inactive users still count towards your total, or a misconfigured or old automation that’s executing tasks in the background.

To prevent these price jumps, regularly clean database lists to get rid of unengaged or bounced contacts, and set usage alerts or caps so you’re not pushed up a tier unnecessarily or without warning.

This one’s more common that most business owners realise. Different teams often buy software to solve an immediate problem without checking if an existing tool can do the job. This results in the business paying twice for the same capability.

To stop paying double, audit your tech stack by functionality and evaluate whether any existing software can be consolidated.

A niche tool gets bought for a one-off project or a single employee’s job, but the recurring charge continues long after the project ends or the employee no longer needs it (or worse has left the business entirely).

Individually, these charges might be small. £10 here, £30 somewhere else. Add them all together and they’re a real margin killer especially if no one is actively using what you’re paying for.

Design, prototyping or stock asset platforms

To catch these sneaky charges, conduct a quarterly review of recurring software expenses and confirm that each one is still genuinely needed.

Free trials and first-year discounts are great for testing whether a tool actually earns its place in the business. However, once the introductory period expires, most tools convert automatically to a full-price subscription or annual commitment. If no one actively reviews whether the tool is worth it, the new cost becomes permanent without ever being questioned.

To prevent this silent cost creep, keep a record of trial and promo ends dates, and set a precedent of reviewing these tools in advance so you can cancel, negotiate a second-year discount (if possible) or actually justify its ongoing use well before the full price rolls over.

For trials, you could even consider using a virtual card with a low spend limit (e.g. £1) so that if someone forgets to cancel, the payment simply declines instead of going through unannounced.

Recovering 10-20% of your software spend is one of the easiest ways to improve profit margin with minimal effort.

If you want to tackle all wasted spend at once, the place to start is by exporting the last 60 days of credit card statements and going through every recurring software charge line by line. Cancel unused software, consolidate redundant or duplicate tools, and remove unneeded paid seats.

It might be an hour or two’s work but those cost savings go straight to your bottom line.

The hidden subscription costs draining your profit margin

Business advice

Tax on crypto assets, including a new reporting framework and greater HMRC compliance checks.

What you should know about paying tax on crypto in the UK, including a new OECD reporting framework and greater HMRC compliance checks.

Tax on crypto in the UK (2026 update)

Approximately 4.6 million people in the UK now own cryptocurrency, representing around 8% of UK adults. For many, crypto now sits alongside traditional investments. With the introduction of a reporting framework earlier this year and HMRC cracking down on potential non-compliance, it’s more important than ever to make sure your crypto activity lines up with what you submit to HMRC when reporting any income or capital gains.

If you receive crypto through employment, mining, staking, lending or liquidity pool arrangements, it counts as income. You may need to pay income tax and national insurance contributions on the amount received, based on its market value (in GBP) at the date you received it.

If you buy crypto, you don’t need to pay tax at the time of purchase. Tax will be due when you dispose of it (if you make a gain).

If you dispose of crypto, any gain or loss is typically subject to capital gains tax. If you received it for free, the gain is calculated based on its market value at the point of disposal.

You can deduct certain costs from your gain, including transaction fees, fees paid to draw up contracts, costs of getting a professional valuation and reasonable costs incurred to find a buyer. You can also deduct capital losses made on other disposal events to reduce your overall gain (and minimise tax).

Each transaction needs to be recorded separately with the date, type of token, amount disposed of, amount remaining, and the value in GBP.

Disposal events that trigger CGT reporting include:

Selling crypto for cash or another currency

Trading or exchanging one cryptocurrency for another (e.g. Bitcoin to Ethereum)

Gifting crypto to someone else (excluding spouse or civil partner)

Transfers between wallets of the same type of crypto, gifting your crypto to a spouse or civil partner (provided you live together), or donating your crypto tokens to a registered UK charity do not trigger a taxable disposal.

To report and pay capital gains tax, you can either include it in your Self Assessment at the end of the tax year or use HMRC’s real-time service to report it right away. 

CGT is only due if your total taxable gains in a tax year exceed the annual tax-free allowance (for the 2026/27 year, this allowance is £3,000).

From 1 January 2026, the UK implemented the Cryptoasset Reporting Framework (CARF). This is an international standard developed by the OECD to create transparency across digital asset transactions. The UK is one of more than 40 countries that have now adopted this framework.

CARF creates a structured system that allows HMRC to see your transaction history automatically, rather than relying on self-reporting or information gathered through compliance checks.

The data collected covers 3 key types of activity:

Crypto-to-local-currency transactions: Buying or selling crypto using GBP or another currency.

Crypto-to-crypto trades: Swapping one asset for another, such as bitcoin for ethereum or stablecoins.

Transfer between wallets: Moving crypto between accounts or platforms where it meets reporting thresholds. 

Each transaction record includes the user's details, the date, the amount, the type of asset involved and the value in pounds. This data is then reported to HMRC from the exchange platforms.

The first reporting period runs from 1 January 2026 until 31 December 2026, with reports from cryptoasset exchanges to HMRC due by 31 May 2027.

Information will be exchanged between tax authorities in participating countries, so activity on foreign exchanges will also be reported back to HMRC for UK tax residents.

In July 2026, HMRC launched a campaign targeting wealthy taxpayers holding crypto and encouraging them to check they have reported their transactions correctly. This timing comes at a point when HMRC's data collection under CARF is now live and the authority can start comparing what it sees in the data against what has been reported in Self Assessment tax returns.

HMRC will cross-check the transaction information reported by crypto platforms against your Self Assessment tax return. If there are discrepancies, it will trigger further inquiry. This might be a simple letter asking you to verify your position, or it might be a more detailed review of your tax affairs.

Where HMRC identifies that you have failed to report gains, underreported gains or missed disposals entirely, adjustments will be made. Additional tax, interest and penalties may apply.

If you have held or traded crypto in previous years, now is the time to review your records and your tax returns. 

Specifically, you should do the following:

Pull together a complete transaction history across all platforms used, including trades, swaps, and transfers, not just activity involving cash. 

Identify where disposal events may have occurred

Check whether past reporting and tax returns reflect actual activity

Address incomplete or unclear records (it’s far better to address this now before HMRC pick up on it)

You can use tools (such as Koinly) to help you compile transaction histories. These platforms can sync with your exchange accounts and generate reports that make the records clearer to review.

Your accountant needs records of your transaction history so they can accurately calculate your tax position. Going forward, they’ll also be able to reconcile it against HMRC data to ensure your Self Assessment reflects the same picture.

The information you should provide your accountant after each tax year includes a ledger from each platform clearly showing:

All purchase transactions with dates, quantities and values. 

All sale transactions with dates, quantities and values. 

The opening balance of each asset held at the start of each tax year and the closing balance at the end.

If you have not kept detailed records or if your records are messy, now is the time to reconstruct them. This becomes harder the further you move away from the transactions. The sooner you work through your history, the sooner you can be confident your tax position is correct and you won’t face any potential issues in the future once data starts flowing through to HMRC.

If you are unsure how your crypto activity should be treated or whether your tax position is correct, an accountant who understands crypto can help you work through it and get everything into order.

Discover the tax implications of business asset disposal and reliefs that may be available to minimise the tax bill.

A guide to tax on UK business asset disposals for sole traders, partnerships, trusts, and limited companies, including capital gains tax, corporation tax and key reliefs like BDAR.

Tax on business asset disposal in the UK

When you sell business assets in the UK, the tax bill isn't a one-size-fits-all. Your business structure determines whether you're paying Capital Gains Tax or Corporation Tax, what rate applies and which reliefs might be available. Getting this right can save you thousands.

For sole traders, any profit you make when selling business assets is taxed through Capital Gains Tax. This applies whether you're selling equipment, property, goodwill or intellectual property.

You get an annual exemption of £3,000 per tax year, but any capital gain above this is taxable as part of your Self Assessment return. The rate depends on your income tax band. For basic rate taxpayers, gains are taxed at 18%, while higher or additional rate taxpayers are taxed at 24%. Capital losses can be offset against gains to reduce your tax liability.

When a partnership disposes of business assets, the partnership itself doesn't pay tax. Instead the chargeable gain is allocated to each partner according to their profit sharing arrangement. Each partner then pays Capital Gains Tax on their share.

The same annual exemption (£3,000) and rates apply as for sole traders: basic rate taxpayers pay 18% on gains above the exemption, higher rate taxpayers pay 24%. The partnership calculates the total gain and allocates it to partners. Each partner reports their share on their individual Self Assessment return. Partners can offset any personal capital losses against their share of the gain.

Limited companies don’t pay Capital Gains Tax on the profit from selling business assets. Instead, the gain is taxed through Corporation Tax alongside the company's other profits.

The corporation tax rates for 2026 are: 

19% on profits up to £50,000 (small profits rate)

25% on profits over £250,000 (main rate)

Marginal relief applied to the amount between £50,000 and £250,000. 

A key difference from the previous business structures is that there's no annual exemption. The company pays tax on the entire gain. The gain is calculated as sale proceeds minus the original cost and any allowable costs such as legal fees or improvements.

Holding companies that own operating subsidiaries also pay Corporation Tax on any gains from disposing of subsidiary shares or group assets. The calculation follows the same corporation tax rates as other limited companies.

Trusts are treated differently depending on their type. Trustees pay Capital Gains Tax on gains from disposing of trust assets.

Trustees get an annual exemption of £1,500 per tax year, significantly lower than the £3,000 available to individuals. Trustees are treated as higher rate taxpayers for CGT purposes, meaning gains above the exemption are taxed at 24%. Trustees report gains on a separate tax return. Beneficiaries don’t pay the tax directly on trust disposals.


Tax reliefs available on business asset disposal

This is the most valuable relief available for sole traders or partnerships selling assets (or their entire business) or individuals selling shares in a Ltd Company you own or hold a qualifying stake in. It applies a flat Capital Gains Tax rate to qualifying gains, up to a £1 million lifetime limit. From April 2026, the rate is 18% (previously 14% for 2025/26 and 10% before that).

The eligibility conditions are strict but clear. You must have owned the business or held a qualifying stake for at least two years immediately before the disposal. Beyond that, the rules differ by structure.

Sole traders: You must have been actively involved in operating the business for at least two years.

Partnerships: You must have been a partner (with active involvement) for at least two years.

Company shareholders: You must hold at least 5% of the ordinary share capital and 5% of voting rights, and be an officer or employee of the company. This two-year requirement must be met immediately before disposal.

Trustees: Eligibility depends on the trust type and nature of the asset. Some trusts disposing of business assets or shares in trading companies may qualify, but the conditions are more restrictive.

On a £1 million gain, the difference between paying 24% and 18% is £60,000. On a £500,000 gain, the saving is £30,000. For business owners planning an exit, this relief can materially improve the after-tax proceeds. However, you should seek further advice from your accountant as there are restrictions (pre and post-sale) on this relief.

If you gift business assets or shares in a trading company to someone, or transfer them at below market value, holdover relief can defer the Capital Gains Tax. The gain is not charged immediately to you. Instead, it's rolled forward and reduces the recipient's cost base when they eventually sell the asset.

The asset must qualify as a business asset or be shares in an unlisted trading company. 

Residential property generally does not qualify for holdover relief

Both the donor and recipient must jointly elect for the relief within four years of the disposal

Relief is not available if the recipient is non-UK resident

Holdover relief is commonly used in family business succession, allowing owners to pass on businesses or shares to children without triggering an immediate tax bill. The incoming owner inherits a lower cost base but can benefit from their own reliefs when they eventually sell. 

If a company reinvests the proceeds from an asset sale into new qualifying business assets within a specific timeframe (usually three years), Rollover Relief can defer the corporation tax on the gain. The gain is deducted from the cost base of the new asset rather than being charged immediately.

Rollover Relief is particularly useful when companies are upgrading equipment, relocating and purchasing new premises, or restructuring assets as part of business operations. The relief doesn't eliminate the tax, it defers it. When the new asset is eventually sold, the deferred gain becomes part of the calculation at that time.

Important Note: Rollover Relief is only available to companies (not sole traders or partnerships) and only applies to certain types of assets such as tangible fixed assets used in the business. Cash and investment property typically do not qualify.

This relief applies to holding companies or substantial shareholders disposing of shares in another company. If a company or individual has held at least a 10% stake in another company for at least 12 months of a two-year period, the entire gain on disposal may be exempt from tax.

This is a powerful tool for group restructuring and is particularly relevant for holding companies managing multiple operating subsidiaries. Unlike other reliefs which reduce the rate, Substantial Shareholding Exemption can eliminate the entire tax bill on qualifying disposals.

Sarah operates as a self-employed joiner and has owned her business for seven years. She decides to sell her workshop and equipment for £250,000. Her original cost was £80,000. The gain is £170,000.

After using her £3,000 annual exemption, her taxable gain is £167,000. Sarah is a higher rate taxpayer.

Without any extra relief, she’d pay CGT at 24% = £40,080.

Since she qualifies for Business Asset Disposal Relief, she only needs to pay the 18% rate (up to her £1 million lifetime limit). Instead of paying £40,080, her tax bill becomes £30,060.

Two equal partners own a digital marketing agency and have been partners for five years. They sell the business premises for £600,000. The original cost was £350,000. The gain is £250,000.

Each partner's share of the gain is £125,000. After their individual £3,000 annual exemption, each has a taxable gain of £122,000. Both are higher rate taxpayers.

Without relief, each would pay CGT at 24% = £29,280 each, or £58,560 combined.

Since they qualify for Business Asset Disposal Relief, each pays the 18% CGT rate instead = £21,960 each.

The savings: £7,320 per partner, or £14,640 between them

ABC Ltd buys a warehouse for £400,000. After five years it sells for £600,000. The gain is £200,000.

The company's total taxable profits for the year are £300,000 (including the £200,000 gain from the asset sale). Using the 2026 corporation tax rates, the effective rate on the gain is approximately 24%.

Without any relief, the corporation tax bill is around £72,000 on the £200,000 gain.

If the company immediately reinvested the £600,000 into new qualifying equipment or premises, Rollover Relief could defer the tax. Instead of paying £72,000, the company would deduct the £200,000 gain from the cost base of the new asset, deferring the tax until that asset is eventually sold.

The benefit: Tax deferred, preserving cash for reinvestment. (careful planning is required where corporation tax rate is increasing).

Trust disposing of trading company shares

A discretionary trust owns 100% of the shares in an unquoted trading company. The shares were purchased for £150,000 and sold for £500,000. The gain is £350,000.

The trust is a higher rate taxpayer for CGT purposes. After the £1,500 exemption, the taxable gain is £348,500.

If the trust qualifies for Business Asset Disposal Relief (having held shares for at least two years and the company being a trading company), the CGT rate becomes 18% = £62,730.

Holding company disposing of subsidiary stake

XYZ Holdings Ltd owns 15% of the shares in an unquoted operating company and has held that stake for six years. The shares were purchased for £500,000 and sold for £1,200,000. The gain is £700,000.

The holding company's total taxable profits for the year are £900,000. Using the 2026 corporation tax rates, the effective corporation tax rate on the gain is approximately 24%.

Without relief, the corporation tax bill would be around £168,000 on the £700,000 gain.

Since XYZ Holdings qualifies for Substantial Shareholding Exemption, the entire gain is exempt from corporation tax.

The difference between paying £30,000 and £72,000 on the same asset sale often comes down to business structure and relief eligibility. For business owners planning an exit or a significant asset disposal, that gap can swing from thousands to hundreds of thousands depending on scale.

This is where working with the right advisor matters. Getting the structure right, understanding which reliefs apply to your situation and organising the right timing of a disposal is what can separate a good asset sale from a great one (or even a bad one).

When London's networking events fell short, Arthur Colquhoun built something better.

BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT  •  22 JUNE 2026  •  5 MIN READ

When traditional networking events fell short, Arthur Colquhoun built something better. Learn how he's changing the game for fellow business founders.

Business spotlight: YES Club

Arthur Colquhoun moved to London looking for his people (entrepreneurs). He found a lot of networking events instead. So he built something better.

Here is something nobody tells you before you start a business. The early days are not just hard. They are quietly, persistently lonely.

You are making decisions nobody else fully understands. You are carrying a version of the future in your head that you cannot quite explain yet. And in a city like London, surrounded by millions of people, it is entirely possible to feel like the only person in the room who is building something from nothing.

Arthur Colquhoun knows that feeling well. He moved to London wanting to meet other ambitious people, to find the kinds of conversations that actually go somewhere. He tried the networking events. He went to more than a few of them.

"A lot of them were pretty underwhelming," he says. "They felt quite transactional, quite awkward. A bit performative."

After enough of those evenings, a different question started forming. Not "why are these events bad?" but "what would a good one actually look like?"

The name has a dual life. On the surface it carries the mindset Arthur wanted to build around, that founders disposition of stepping forward, saying yes to the uncomfortable thing, doing the thing that scares you a little. That spirit is embedded in what YES Club does.

But the literal meaning? Young Entrepreneur Supper Club. An acronym that even most of YES Club's own members do not know.

"I told a few of my community members the other day and they were like,  what? No way," Arthur says, laughing.

The supper club element is not incidental. It is the design. Founders come together around a table, not a stage. The format creates the conditions for something rarer than a business card exchange, an actual conversation between people who are genuinely in it.

Building the antidote to the awkward room

Every YES Club event is curated with a precision that is unusual in a world of automated invitations and templated follow-ups. Each guest receives a handwritten invitation. Arthur personally jumps on a call with most of the people attending. The handwritten touches continue throughout the experience itself.

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