Innovative financing strategies in the small and medium business sector, tapping the right sources

Abstract

Abstract: Small and medium businesses are still small due to financial incapacitation. Financial resources are the limiting factors for growth; therefore, the study explores the SMEs' sources of finance and innovative financial strategies for firm growth. The research adopted mixed methods. The structured questionnaires were used on a face to face, telephonic, email, and virtual forms. The survey was more concerned with quantitative and qualitative finance sources on both preferred and business uses. The results show that the financing preferences of owners/managers of all the selected Districts changed accordingly with the growing needs of their SMEs. At the start-up stage, they appear to have relied much on their savings and financial support from immediate families. After two years of economic viability, the SMEs have increased their reliance on the support of financial institutions. With the growth in the implementation of 4th Industrialisation and progresses in artificial intelligence, the World is now a village. Social media has reduced the distance. Therefore, the study proposed project financial strategies and trust financing were SMEs can tap into for their financing needs. Innovations in the global village induce untapped sources of financing through the currently proposed financing models for SMEs in this study.