Govt could shoulder more risk for SME loans in Budget 2019: DBS economist

Singapore

IN the upcoming Singapore Budget 2019, more help could be given to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to access policy assistance schemes and to support those firms venturing into the Asean region, a report from DBS suggests.

DBS senior economist Irvin Seah, the author of the report - the second in a series of three - noted that some policy measures continue to be "skewed in favour of bigger companies".

For example, schemes such as the SME Working Capital Loan are administered by participating financial institutions (PFIs), but the preference for these PFIs is typic…