Title: SME-bank relationship: organisation-to-organisation or person-to-person? A view from Japan

Authors: Zakaria Boulanouar; Lobna Essid; Abderazak Bakhouche; Azilawati Banchit

Addresses: Department of Accounting and Finance, College of Business and Economics, The United Arab Emirates University, UAE ' Laboratoire de Recherche en Microéconomie Appliquée, Higher Institute of Biotechnology Beja, University of Jendouba, Tunisia ' Department of Finance, Higher Colleges of Technology, Dubai, UAE ' Faculty of Business and Management, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Sarawak, Malaysia

Abstract: Research on the SME-bank relationship has focused on the relationship between two organisations - the bank and the firm. This study argues why it needs to be looked at between two people - the loan officer and the SME owner/manager. Among the research questions developed were the reasons for the existence of such a relationship and the form(s) it takes. Interviews with loan officers at a representative sample of Japanese banks were used to collect data. The analysis revealed the existence of such a relationship; however, due to the job rotation system prevailing in Japan, it is between the SME manager/owner and the bank. Banks build such a relationship to compensate for the lack of information about SMEs and refer to it as one of 'trust' and 'mutual support'. Without adequate alternatives that are relevant to SMEs' peculiarities, fintech has the potential to rob banks of this crucial instrument for accurately assessing SMEs' creditworthiness.

Keywords: small and medium-sized enterprises; SME; relationship-banking; loan officer; SME-owner/manager; Japan.

DOI: 10.1504/IJBPM.2023.132343

International Journal of Business Performance Management, 2023 Vol.24 No.3/4, pp.526 - 555

Received: 08 Dec 2021
Accepted: 31 Oct 2022
Published online: 18 Jul 2023 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article