Financial and Non-Financial Determinants of Access to Bank Credit

This book examines the various factors of credit worthiness in order to assess their influence on access to bank credit by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). Finance has been identified in many business surveys as one of the most important factors determining the survival and growth of SMEs in both developing and developed countries. Access to finance enables SMEs to participate in productive investments, thus ensuring their competitiveness and that of the nation as a whole. Despite their dominant numbers and importance in job creation, small and medium enterprises often face difficulty in obtaining bank credit. A review of the literature on financing small and medium sized enterprises shows that there is a gap in knowledge of the determinants of access to bank finance by the SMEs in developing countries such as Kenya. Most studies are limited in scope. Therefore, this study investigated both financial and non financial factors which determine access to bank credit by SMEs in Kenya.