The Impact of the 2008-2009 Global Crisis on Loan Applications and Access to Finance

In this study, we examine new loan applications made by manufacturing firms in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. We compare the pre-global crisis and post-global crisis loan applications. We find that fewer manufacturers applied for a new loan post-crisis (45.89% vs 29.91%). When we compare the main reasons for manufacturers not applying for a new loan pre- vs. post-crisis, we find that, after the crisis, more firms stated that there was no need for a loan. Also, more firms stated that application procedures were complex, interest rates were not favorable, and they did not think it would be approved. On the other hand, fewer manufacturers stated that post-crisis, collateral requirement was too high, the size of loan and maturity were insufficient, and it was necessary to make informal payments (i.e., corruption). Overall, our findings suggest that while certain aspects of financing for manufacturers improved after the crisis, others deteriorated. We also find that there was a statistically significant decrease in the percentage of manufacturers that had their financial statements checked/certified by an external auditor. Finally, post-crisis, “access to finance” was seen as a smaller obstacle by manufacturers. We conclude that the reason for fewer manufacturers applying for a new loan post-crisis was not all measures of “access to finance”; it was rather the lack of a need for a new loan and certain aspects of “Access to finance”.