Debt policy and performance of SMEs
- 21 August 2007
- journal article
- Published by Emerald in The Journal of Risk Finance
- Vol. 8 (4), 364-379
- https://doi.org/10.1108/15265940710777315
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this research is to examine the effect of debt policy (capital structure) on the financial performance of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Ghana and South Africa. Previous studies, especially on large firms, have shown that capital structure affects firm performance. Though the issue has been widely studied, largely missing from this body of literature is the focus on SMEs. Design/methodology/approach – Panel data analysis is used to investigate the relations between measures of capital structure and financial performance. Findings – Using various measures of performance, the results of this study indicate that capital structure influences financial performance, although not exclusively. By and large, the results indicate that capital structure, especially long-term and total debt ratios, negatively affect performance of SMEs. This suggests that agency issues may lead to SMEs pursuing very high debt policy, thus resulting in lower performance. Originality/value – The main value of this paper is the analysis of the effect of debt policy on the performance of SMEs in Ghana and South Africa.Keywords
This publication has 30 references indexed in Scilit:
- The effect of capital structure on profitability: an empirical analysis of listed firms in GhanaThe Journal of Risk Finance, 2005
- Agency Cost Of Free Cash Flow, Corporate Finance, and TakeoversSSRN Electronic Journal, 1999
- The capital structure and investment decisions of the small owner-managed firm: Some exploratory issuesSmall Business Economics, 1995
- Corporate Capital Structure Decisions: Evidence from Leveraged BuyoutsFinancial Management, 1995
- Dividend Policy under Asymmetric InformationThe Journal of Finance, 1985
- Corporate financing and investment decisions when firms have information that investors do not haveJournal of Financial Economics, 1984
- The effect of capital structure on a firm's liquidation decisionJournal of Financial Economics, 1984
- A Theory of Capital Structure Relevance Under Imperfect InformationThe Journal of Finance, 1982
- The Determination of Financial Structure: The Incentive-Signalling ApproachThe Bell Journal of Economics, 1977
- Determinants of the Firm's Capital StructureThe Review of Economics and Statistics, 1975