Narrow Results

The vital factors which can facilitate the development of Startups and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in markets are the appropriate regulatory and policy frameworks. However, there is a difference in the frameworks which may contribute to different levels of development of startups and SMEs in different countries. This chapter thus focuses on the comparative study of the frameworks of selected countries to display their possible challenges in those countries. The chapter shows that governments in Japan, Republic of Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand adopt different regulatory frameworks which help stimulate the creation of startups and SMEs. It provides comparisons of the frameworks in those four countries, and also presents that there are challenges from these regulatory frameworks for startups and SMEs developing there.

Recently, the Republic of Korea has been focusing on vitalizing its startup ecosystem. In response, startup financing is also gaining importance. Therefore, this research aims to propose effective ways to support startup financing by exploring the cases of the startup financing programs managed by Korea Credit Guarantee Fund, hereinafter referred to as “KODIT”. KODIT is managing diverse startup financing programs including Startup NEST, First Penguin guarantee, guarantee with investment option, and Innovative Icon guarantee. Through managing such startup financing programs, it has developed the following recommendations to improve the effectiveness of its startup financing programs. We expect the following recommendations will provide relevant policy implications to startup support institutions in diverse Asian countries, where the role of policy finance is extremely important. First, the clear setting of the target customers should take precedence in designing startup financing. Second, much effort should be taken to reinforce the expertise and capabilities of the staff who are dedicated to supporting startups. Third, it is necessary to manage startup financing based on the diagnosis of the issues of the startup ecosystem. Fourth, the evaluation on startups should be made based on future growth potential. Fifth, there should be phased support in link with the management performance of startups. Sixth, startup financing should be supported comprehensively together with customized non-finance solutions.

This chapter addresses the efficiency of financing mechanisms and tools of the state implemented in Kazakhstan through the national small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) development institute Entrepreneurship Development Fund (hereafter Damu). This study considers the data on Damu financing provided to SMEs during 2005–2019 and the relationship of this financing to the overall contribution of SMEs to the GDP of the country during this period. This chapter analyzes whether Damu’s activities promoted the economic development of the country and whether Damu is overall financially efficient as an organization, how Damu has promoted startup businesses, and the factors by which microfinancing affects economic development in Kazakhstan. The results indicate that Damu has been successful, as shown by the number of SMEs financed and the number of jobs created, to reduce regional disparity in financing SMEs. The results also show that many small firms cannot grow into medium-sized enterprises in a competitive market, even with government support. Public financial institutions are recommended to help SMEs improve their management quality and to reduce information asymmetry between loan providers and clients so SMEs can grow with a long-term strategy in a competitive market.

With the remarkable advances in IT technologies, a range of financial services combining finance and technology have been developed in the financial sector, thereby leading to increased convenience for financial customers. However, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which have served as the foundation of the Republic of Korea and most Asia economies, have been marginalized from the benefits of these new technologies and continue to face difficulties in gaining access to finance. In this regards, our study will identify the difficulties which SMEs are facing in relation to financing and introduce cases to enhance the financial accessibility of SMEs through the convergence of financial services for SMEs and new financial technologies. This chapter examines financial technology (Fintech) that can satisfy such needs and attempts to resolve the financial exclusion of SMEs by establishing a new evaluation infrastructure that evaluates the current business activities of corporations by tapping into Big Data such as dynamic and non-financial alternative data that has otherwise been unused. In addition, we introduce a non-face-to-face finance service online platform which reduces SMEs’ physical difficulties in accessing finance and enables 24-hour, 365-day financial service. We found that Big Data on SMEs’ business activities and platform can improve the accessibility of SMEs to finance.

Promoting scientific and technological innovation and high-quality development of small and medium-sized enterprises is an important part of implementing the national innovation-driven development strategy and manufacturing power strategy. At present, with the rapid development of “digital finance” some “digital finance” tools can effectively alleviate the difficulties of “financing difficulty” and “expensive financing” of SMEs’ technological innovation and provide effective support for SMEs’ technological innovation. Digital transformation is an effective way for our country’s small and medium-sized enterprises to achieve high-quality scientific and technological innovation development. Based on the theoretical framework of TOE, this paper adopts the necessary condition analysis (NCA) and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fsQCA) methods to reflect the so-called technical, organizational, and environmental aspects. The specific action mechanism of various antecedent conditions, including data algorithms, is based on the digital transformation of enterprises. It provides a useful reference for understanding the role of digital finance between the government and enterprises. It also provides new ideas and empirical evidence for designing and improving relevant science and technology innovation policies, which have important theoretical and practical significance.