The OECD has released Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2026: An OECD Scoreboard, bringing together official indicators and policy snapshots for 48 countries on SME and entrepreneur access to debt, equity and asset-based finance. It concludes that financing conditions have started to ease with lower policy rates, but borrowing costs and lending terms remain tighter than before the pandemic and the rebound in new SME lending has not translated into sustained credit growth or investment. Across reporting countries, SME interest rates were higher than pre-pandemic levels in 34 out of 39 cases, and 10 out of 17 countries recorded higher shares of SMEs needing collateral. The Scoreboard median for new SME lending rose by 5.7% in 2024 after a 9% decline in 2023, but lending remained 4% below 2022 and the stock of SME loans as a share of GDP fell in 25 out of 41 countries, alongside a decline in long-term loans. Other channels remained mixed: the median growth rate of factoring fell by 3% in 2024 and leasing rose by 1.6%, while venture capital volumes increased in 18 out of 30 countries but the recovery was uneven and concentrated in a small number of large artificial intelligence deals. The report also highlights the growing role of fintech-driven finance and non-bank lenders, and points to policy responses ranging from targeted support for trade disruption and sustainability investments to legal and digital infrastructure reforms for tech-enabled factoring and transferable records. A thematic chapter reviews how governments are leveraging venture capital through direct and fund-of-funds programmes, often via public development banks, including efforts to steer investment toward green-tech, deep-tech and defence and to improve access for women-owned firms and underserved regions. The publication also sets out recommendations to strengthen data quality and comparability, including expanded collection of gender- and location-disaggregated indicators and better coverage of online alternative finance.
OECD 2026-03-31
OECD publishes 2026 SME finance scoreboard showing fragile bank lending recovery and growing reliance on fintech and venture capital
The OECD’s “Financing SMEs and Entrepreneurs 2026: An OECD Scoreboard” finds that although financing conditions have begun to ease, SME borrowing costs, collateral requirements and lending terms remain tighter than before the pandemic, and new lending has not produced sustained credit growth or investment. The report notes uneven trends across debt, asset-based finance and venture capital, the growing role of fintech and non-bank lenders, and policy measures to support trade, sustainability and tech-enabled finance. A thematic chapter reviews government venture capital programmes, often via public development banks, and urges better data, including gender- and location-disaggregated indicators and coverage of online alternative finance.