Finance and the small firm

This edited collection is based upon work carried out under the ESRC's Small Business Programme. It examines key issues in the financing of small businesses. The starting premise is that there are imperfections in the market for the provision of finance for small firms. Excessive dependence upon short-term facilities such as loans and overdrafts has inhibited more long-standing relationships between small firms and providers of finance which would be more mutually beneficial. The contributors call for changes which would solve this current imbalance. They suggest that small firms need to become more 'professional' in their financial management, with owners more prepared to 'share' equity. Financial institutions need to rely less on collateral and concentrate more on making informed judgements about the qualities of each business.

In this volume small firms are not treated as one indistinguishable mass but are broken down into specific types: the micro firm; the 'high-tech' small firm and the small firm owned by an individual from an ethnic minority. This treatment is unique. Written by experts in small business, this volume will be of great interest to researchers in small business, students of industrial economics, business finance and management studies and by government policy advisers and financial advisers.