The SME struggle for financing: a clampdown in European banks post-crisis
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to explore how banks have modified their behaviours since the subprime crisis and their influence on credit access for SMEs.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper aims to explore how banks have modified their behaviours since the subprime crisis and their influence on credit access for SMEs.
Findings
We provide evidence that strategic orientations adopted by banks (both fragile and robust) are quite voluntary and not simply the result of following regulations. Unfortunately, these orientations have hampered SMEs' access to credit.
Practical implications
The core result of the paper is to emphasize that banking behaviours have considerably changed just after the subprime crisis and that SMEs have to deal with this new reality. These findings could be of interest for regulators and banking authorities to control liquidity constraints and guarantee both the stability of the global banking system and sustainable economic growth.
Originality/value
Using an original data reduction method and balance sheet analysis, this paper found evidence of key changes in banking behaviours during the subprime crisis.
Keywords
Citation
Paulet, E., Parnaudeau, M. and Abdessemed, T. (2014), "The SME struggle for financing: a clampdown in European banks post-crisis", Journal of Business Strategy, Vol. 35 No. 2, pp. 36-45. https://doi.org/10.1108/JBS-09-2013-0089
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited