2.2. Los Proyectos
2.2.6. Elaboración del presupuesto
Despite the diversity in definitions and missing data, the country experts in most cases were able to identify sufficient data which would allow core indicators or reasonable proxies to be constructed. The differences in the exact composition of the indicators were muted by the fact that changes in the indicators, rather than the absolute values, are being examined across periods. Cross-country comparisons are more difficult and only a few of the indicators can be validly compared. The chief value of the Scoreboard is its usefulness as a framework to gather and display a number of important indicators. Having the indicators examined as a set has proved more effective than looking at the
indicators one by one. Having them side by side allow a coherent story to be told in terms
of SMEs access to finance, government responses, and the impact of those responses on SME survival during the crisis in each country. Moreover, when the indicators are assembled as a group on the national Scoreboard, they give a clear picture of the SME situation in terms of their treatment by the financial system. While considerable work has already been done to harmonize the indicators of the OECD Scoreboard, more work needs to be done in the harmonization of data collection. What is needed is not more
data collection but better data collection. For example, some governments, in order to
have more precise and timely information, are reducing the size of their surveys so that they can be conducted more frequently and they are harmonizing the questions asked
Given the role banks played in the financial crisis, more transparency on their part would increase the information needed to evaluate SME access to finance. In particular, banks need to report regularly on their SME lending by firm size and lending which is supported
by government guarantees, their interest rate spreads, their collateral requirements, and
their nonperforming loans. They have this information; it is a matter of making it public. Financial regulators, principally central banks, need to sit together in the appropriate forum with policy makers to agree on what information should be collected on SME financing
and how this is to be achieved and made available to the wider community interested in
SME and entrepreneurship promotion. 1. Improving Data When it comes to improving SME data, it is necessary to fill the gaps in available data and work towards more comprehensive information in key areas. To improve the usefulness of SME data on financing, a number of actions could be undertaken at the national and international level, such as the following:
• Analysis of SME financing should be based on timely, quantitative supply-side
data and demand-side data. Qualitative information coming from demand- and
supply-side opinion surveys should be used only to supplement the analysis.
Where supply-side data are not available (as in the case of collateral), demand- side survey information can be used.
• To improve quantitative supply-side data, banks and other credit institutions should be required by their regulatory authorities to extract and publicly report existing
information on their SME lending by firm size broken down into the appropriate size categories. • To improve transparency in bank lending to SMEs, banks should report those SME loans which are publicly supported, their SME interest rates, their fees charged, their SME collateral requirements, and nonperforming SME loans. • Those international, regional, and national financial authorities as well as business
associations carrying out demand-side surveys should work together to develop
core questions which could simplify and standardize the questionnaires. Where
possible, these surveys should be undertaken jointly to increase the response rate
and decrease the cost. There is a role for increased international cooperation and
capacity building in this area.
• Financial institutions should be required to use the national statistical definitions based on firm size when reporting their SME lending. This can be most easily done by having the financial institutions use the national statistical definition based on number of employees or turnover when reporting their SME loans. Breaking the raw data down into various firm size categories resolves, in large part, the problem of different definitions of an SME.
• To assess the health of the SME sector, national authorities should monitor
payment delays and firm failures by firm size.
In the medium to long term, it is necessary to make progress on the harmonization of definitions and to improve transparency and accounting practices by financial institutions. The OECD Scoreboard provides a framework for what can be collected at the present
Table 15: Preferred Definitions for Core Indicators
Indicator Definition or Description Source
SME loans Bank and financial institution loans to SMEs, amount outstanding (stocks) at the end of period OR new loans (flows); by firm size using the national definition of SME or if necessary, loan amounts less than €1 million Supply-side data from financial institutions
Total business loans Bank and financial institution business loans to all nonfinancial enterprises, amount outstanding (stocks) or new loans (flows)
Supply-side data
SME short-term loans Loans equal to or less than 1 year; outstanding
amounts or new loans Supply- or demand-side data
SME long-term loans Loans for more than one year; outstanding
amounts or new loans
Supply- or demand-side data
SME government loan
guarantees Guarantees available to banks and financial institutions, either new or outstanding Supply-side data
SME government
guaranteed loans
Loans guaranteed by government, stocks or flows Supply-side data
SME government direct
loans Direct loans from government, stocks or flows Supply-side data
SME loans authorized Stocks or flows Demand-side survey
SME loans requested Stocks or flows Demand-side survey
SME nonperforming loans SME nonperforming loans out of total SME loans Supply-side data
SME interest rate Average annual rates for new loans, base rate
plus risk premium; for maturity less than 1 year; and amounts less than €1 million
Supply- or demand-side data
Interest rate spreads Between small and large enterprises; for maturity less than 1 year; amounts less than €1 million and equal to or greater than €1 million
Supply- or demand-side data
Collateral Percentage of SMEs that were required to provide
collateral on latest bank loan Demand-side survey Venture capital Actual amounts invested in SMEs in the country
in early stage development (excludes buyouts, turnarounds, replacements)
Venture capital association (supply-side)
Payment delays Average number of days delay beyond the contract period for business-to-business and
business-to-customer
Demand-side survey
Bankruptcy Number of enterprises ruled bankrupt; and
number bankrupt per 10,000 enterprises Administrative data
Source: OECD (2012, 2013).
moment from existing supply-side and demand-side sources of information and how it can be used. The Scoreboard could serve as a framework for those countries interested in monitoring and improving SME access to finance, thereby facilitating the contribution of SMEs to national income and employment.
References
OECD. 2006a. The SME Financing Gap: Volume I: Theory and Evidence. Paris.
______. 2006b. The SME Financing Gap: Volume II: Proceedings of the Brasilia Conference
27–30 March 2006. Paris.
______. 2006c. The OECD Brasilia Action Statement for SME and Entrepreneurship
Financing, OECD Global Conference on Better Financing for Entrepreneurship and
SME Growth, Brasilia, 27–30 March.
______. 2009. The Impact of the Global Crisis on SME and Entrepreneurship Financing
and Policy Responses. Paris.
______. 2010. Pilot OECD Scoreboard on SMEs and Entrepreneurship Financing Data
and Policies. Paris.
______. 2012. Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2012: An OECD Scoreboard. Paris. ______. 2013. FinancingSMEs and Entrepreneurs 2013: An OECD Scoreboard. Paris.