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SME Finance Forum - Accelerating Finance for Businesses
NEWSLETTER - NOVEMBER 2015
Micro, small and medium businesses worldwide have an unmet credit need of around 3 trillion USD. Lending to SMEs are deemed too risky and too high cost by traditional banks. The question is - How will tech-savvy millennials shape the financial services industry? Can banks innovate to fill the unmet credit needs of small businesses or will they be replaced by fintech companies?
Economic surveys show that SME credit constraint is almost entirely a supply-side problem, as the demand for SME finance is overwhelming. The central challenge in closing the SME credit gap is to find ways of bringing down the costs of providing credit to small businesses in the developing world. This blog advocates a 5-step action plan for how policy makers can address this critical challenge in collaboration with the private sector.
Fintechs are disrupting the banking landscape and consumer expectations. Rather than primarily relying on technological advantage, fintechs focus on identifying unmet SME banking needs. The resulting product offerings are more useful and usable within the patterns, rhythms and constraints of SME business reality.

News and Events


Webinar 12/9:Gaming for Good - Using Simulation to Help Micro-entrepreneurs Get Financing 

Join our webinar with Katrin Schwabe, Senior Director of BTS. BTS, a global professional services firm headquartered in Sweden, has designed a simulation to help micro-entrepreneurs gain business acumen and develop essential financial skills. This training is intended to equip entrepreneurs - particularly women and youth - with the skills to walk into a bank and get credit for their business.

In-Person Event & Webinar 12/15: The Power of Parity - How Can We Add Trillions in Growth? 

Join us for a dialogue with the McKinsey Global Institute (MGI) on the case for gender parity. A recent MGI report demonstrates that if women do not achieve their full economic potential, the global economy will suffer. MGI sizes the economic potential from closing the gender gap and maps 15 gender equality indicators for 95 countries.

From our Library


How Equity Finance Can Help Europe's SMEs Grow

Europe's SMEs are heavily reliant on bank loans with limited access to other types of finance. Yet equity finance is often more suitable for startups and growth companies and is available from diverse sources. 

Integrating SMEs into Global Value Chains - Challenges and Policy Actions in Asia

The opportunities for Asian SMEs in global value chains are enormous. They are exposed to a large customer/buyer base, and enjoy opportunities to learn from large firms and from engaging and surviving in the global marketplace. 

Social Media Highlights


Video: Launch of SME Finance Forum Global Member Network


Her Majesty Queen Máxima of the Netherlands and His Excellency Deputy Prime Minister Cevdet Yilmaz of Turkey at the launch of the SME Finance Forum Global Member Network 



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