This paper takes stock of the empirical evidence on the financing challenges faced by small and medium enterprises, especially in developing countries. The paper first discusses the institutional constraints that impede access to finance, including the lack of reliable credit information, lack...

This paper uses survey data from 120 developing countries to compare the role of institutions with firm characteristics at the time of creation of the firm in explaining the size, growth, and productivity of firms over their lifecycle. The study finds that firm-level characteristics have...

Is it the institutions or firm characteristics at birth that shape startups and their early growth in developing countries? Using comprehensive data from the Indian Annual Survey of Industries this paper addresses this question by studying the early lifecycle of firms across diverse...

There is wide spread concern about a growing gap between top-performing publicly listed firms and the rest of the economy and the implications of this for rising inequality in the U.S. Using conventional return calculations, there is indeed a widening gap between star firms (defined as those...

There is a divergence in the returns of top-performing firms and the rest of the economy, especially in industries that rely on a skilled labor force, raising concerns about their market power. This paper shows that the divergence is explained by the mismeasurement of intangible capital....

This paper investigates the effect of access to finance on job growth in 50,000 firms across 70 eveloping countries. Using the introduction of credit bureaus as an exogenous shock to the supply of credit, the paper finds that increased access to finance results in higher employment growth,...