Spanish SMEs’ Subsidized and Guaranteed Credit during Economic Crisis: A Regional Perspective

Briozzo A. and Cardone-Riportella C. Spanish SMEs’ subsidized and guaranteed credit during economic crisis: a regional perspective, Regional Studies. This study analyses the effects of two Spanish public programmes that provide financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs): (1) subsidized credit by the Official Credit Institute and (2) bank credit guaranteed by a mutual guarantee society. The study was conducted from a regional perspective and it compares the effects of the two programmes during normal times with the effects during economic crisis. During stable periods, these programmes affect the growth of assets, sales and the sales to assets ratio. However, during recession, the effects extend to the growth of employment and the sales to employee ratio. Moreover, there are significant regional differences.