Beijing's strategy to reroute money away from state-owned giants towards smaller firms to help fuel the economic transformation behind its reform plans is less of a success than it may seem on the surface.Lending has increased in line with Beijing's orders. Butbanks have found loopholes allowing them to lend to state-owned firms and some borrowers are local-government-owned, operating in saturated sectors Beijing is trying to consolidate, aggravating the risks facing the financial sector rather than alleviating them.

Crowdfunding is a simple but transformative concept. An entrepreneur proposes a business, charitable, or creative project on a crowdfunding website. If convinced, tens, hundreds or even thousands of individuals commit relatively small amounts of capital to support the idea. Taken together, these contributions may be significant enough to turn the idea into a commercial reality. This industry is still in its infancy, but it topped $3 billion in transactions in 2012 and may top $5 billion by the end of this year.

From angel investment to crowdfunding, today's era of entrepreneurial renaissance offers many options for small firms

Crowdfunding has been one of most hotly watched as well as debated topics over the last several years.? A global phenomenon, it was hailed as the entrance of a new age of funding (and now finance) that could potentially bring the world out of its stagnant and post-recessionary state. Currently best known in the realm of donations and perks based funding, countless social issues as well as products have been funded with the power of the crowd.? In the advent of this massive potential there has been recent legislative push in various regions to allow for crowdinvesting on the internet, or the crowdfunding of securities as opposed to a donations or perks based transaction.

It has been a good year for crowdfunding. The Securities and Exchange Commission lifted the ban on general solicitation, meaning U.S. entrepreneurs can advertise publicly that they're looking for investors. Research firm Massolution estimates that individuals have raised $5.1 billion on crowdfunding sites this year, nearly twice as much as in 2012.Platforms that take a cut of the capital, such as Kickstarter, are no longer the only way to go, as Crowdhoster and Selfstarter have made it possible to run a DIY crowdfunding campaign. But the latest platforms, such as Upstart and Pave, don't even require a solid idea or business plan. With these services, 'treps can sell equity in themselves to accredited investors in exchange for a small cut of their future income.

Madagascar is among the poorest countries in Africa and also ranks low on the continent for financial inclusion - only 5.5% of the adult population has an account at a formal financial institution. With only 19.5 banks and microfinance branches for every 100,000 people, there is a lot of room for improvement when it comes to increasing access to formal financial services.

The peer-to-peer (P2P) lending space in South Africa is heating up. A Johannesburg-based startup called Yiba, an acronym for “You’re Invited Banks Aren’t”, is about to join the fray.
South Africa’s unsecured credit pie is estimated to be worth north of R25-billion. Yiba co-founder Alastair Curtis believes it’s high time that traditional lenders part ways with their large profits.

I see a Lex article in today's FT that hedge fund Edgewood Capital is securitizing $53 million in loans it made through Lending Club. Not sure if these are consumer or business loans, but seems a significant development in crowd funding.In this low interest rate environmrent, expect many more of the same going forward.Matt

MicroSave recently completed a research study on MSMEs in Uganda, and the dilemmas most face with regard to financing and capital management. And these dilemmas are by no means unique to Uganda.Small businesses have long been, it would seem, the darling of microfinanciers, the international donor community, and others interested in supporting the growth of developing economies. “MSMEs and microfinance” yields 700,000 Google results—everyone, from the Aga Khan Foundation to the Asian Development Bank to business schools on every continent, is studying the needs and investment potential for this particular segment. MSMEs are also the principal employers in most emerging markets and contribute significantly to both GDP and GNP.

For many online and other small businesses, getting a loan or a big cash advance is tough. Banks and other traditional lenders are often leery of those without years of financial statements and solid credit scores.