The Impact of Financial Innovation Investment Support on SME Competitiveness
Anna Lewandowska, Yuriy Bilan, Grzegorz Mentel
Keywords:
investments in innovation, EU funds, economic growth, competitiveness, SMEs
Abstract:
This article examines financial support (especially EU Structural Funds as the main tool of
cohesion policy) for investments as a lever for the development of SME innovativeness in
Poland. The European Commission strongly stresses the importance of their cohesion policy
and support for SMEs. European enterprises have suffered significantly from the credit crunch,
and the situation could worsen as banks engage in restructuring to eliminate impaired assets
from their balance sheets. Supporting SMEs and promoting entrepreneurship is essential for
economic development and competitiveness, especially in less developed regions. The main aim
of this study is to establish the impact of financial support for investments, especially from EU
Structural Funds, on SME competitiveness in Poland. We have analyzed empirically the data
drawn from CATI carried out among 805 firms. We have learned how SMEs assess the financial
support from different sources along with the resulting impact on the competitiveness of SMEs.
The main statistical test for relationships and dependencies was the chi-square independence test
and Cramer’s V. The results of our research show that SMEs have not used financial support
efficiently. Moreover, micro-enterprises were shown to be the least effective after receiving
financial support from EU funds. This support often has a demand-driven effect, but it does not
improve firm competitiveness.
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 The Impact of Financial Innovation Investment Support on SME Competitiveness [PDF file] [Filesize: 1.26 MB]
 10.7441/joc.2021.03.06
Lewandowska, A., Bilan, Y., & Mentel, G. (2021). The Impact of Financial Innovation Investment
Support on SME Competitiveness. Journal of Competitiveness, 13(3), 92–110. https://doi.org/10.7441/joc.2021.03.06
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