Foreword
Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2019: An OECD Scoreboard provides information about SMEs and entrepreneurs’ access to finance over the period 2007-17. Based on data collected for the country profiles and information from demand-side surveys, this report includes indicators on debt, equity and asset-based finance, as well as on financing framework conditions, complemented by information on recent public and private initiatives to support SME access to finance.
Taken together, these indicators form a comprehensive framework for policy makers and other stakeholders to evaluate the financing needs of SMEs and entrepreneurs and to determine whether they are being met. This report also constitutes a valuable tool to support the design and evaluation of policy measures, and to monitor the implications of financial reforms on access to finance and financing conditions for SMEs more generally.
The 2019 report represents the eighth edition of this annual publication. It presents data for 46 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, the People’s Republic of China, Colombia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Greece, Hungary, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, Poland, Portugal, the Russian Federation, Serbia, the Slovak Republic, Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, the United Kingdom and the United States.
Chapter one of this publication describes and analyses recent trends in SME and entrepreneurship finance, drawing on data provided by national experts from participating countries, as well as from external sources. It also provides an overview of major policy developments across scoreboard countries. Chapter 2 focuses on how to enable SMEs to leverage intangible assets, such as patents and other forms of intellectual property, to access finance, and includes an overview of policy initiatives in this area around the world. Chapter 3 contains the national profiles on SME and entrepreneurship finance trends, as well as information on relevant policies, for all 46 participating countries. The print edition of this publication includes a snapshot view with key facts and figures, while the expanded profiles can be accessed online.
This publication was prepared by the SME and Entrepreneurship Division of the Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities (CFE/SMEE), under the guidance of the OECD Working Party on SMEs and Entrepreneurship (WPSMEE) and the WPSMEE’s Informal Steering Group on SME and Entrepreneurship Financing.