The search by Key Business Finance (KBF) for a new backer could be hampered because potential buyers will struggle to find cash in the current climate, accountants have warned.

However, solicitors who have taken out KBF loans are unlikely to be forced to repay them if a backer is not found, they said.

KBF, the solicitors’ lending arm of Heritable Bank, was ultimately owned by collapsed Icelandic bank Landsbanki.

Bruce Mackay, restructuring partner at Baker Tilly, said KBF’s sale would be ‘hampered’ by the credit squeeze. ‘It’s difficult to pick an obvious player who’s sitting on a mountain of cash,’ he said.

Jeremy Black, associate partner in the professional practices group at Deloitte, said the terms of each KBF loan would determine whether they would be recalled. ‘If there is no provision to recall the loans, they cannot be recalled,’ he said.

Mackay said solicitors would probably be required to pay back loans according to the original terms, regardless of whether KBF found a backer.