Finance Seminars, Diana Bonfim - Bank of Portugal
Title: Growing SMEs The sensitivity of investment and employment to the cost of debt financing.
How sensitive is the growth of small firms to the cost of borrowing? This paper uses variation in the access to a credit certification program in Portugal to estimate the sensitivity of small and medium sized firms (SMEs)´ investment and employment to the cost of debt financing. The program was implemented during the global financial crisis to prevent small firms from becoming credit constrained. The targeted program provides a credit certification as well as a loan guarantee by the Portuguese government to firms with a minimum credit quality. The program design and implementation allows for a multidimensional regression discontinuity methodology to estimate its real effects over a decade. When comparing firms around cutoff points, we find that eligible firms increase their borrowing, and borrow at significantly lower rates than non-eligible firms. Targeted firms also increase investment and employment when compared to non-certified firms. The program was effective in ensuring small firms continued to grow during the financial crisis, while the certification effects matter mostly in the postcrisis period.
Due to the covid19, the presentation will be remotely through zoom.
Link: https://fgv-br.zoom.us/j/91999112003