With the Saudi government offering many financing options and solutions, small and medium enterprises of various sectors and sizes could access the financing required to meet their needs and promote their growth in the Kingdom.
Monsha’at, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), has released a report showing the value of the financing operations it participated in until the end of 2021.
According to the data, Monsha’at’s financing of SMEs exceeded SAR85.3 billion (22.7 billion dollars), of which SAR 67.7 billion (18 billion dollars) were guaranteed through the “Kafala” program.
The volume of loans given out by Monsha’at’s Funding Gate reached about SAR 11 billion ($ 2.9 billion).
Among the most prominent operations that Monsha’at participated in to support the SMEs sector was the returning of SAR 3.5 billion ($933 million) as compensation for government fees.
The authority was also able to save SAR2.5 billion ($666 million) through its indirect lending initiative.
Meanwhile, the Saudi Venture Capital (SVC) Company was able to offer SMEs SAR 1.3 billion ($346 million).
The Saudi government seeks to raise the motivation and development of SMEs by launching several initiatives and programs that contribute to the expansion of the sector's business by providing all financing solutions.
Borrowing through Funding Gate reached over SR11 billion ($2.93 billion) in 2021 from SAR1.1 billion in 2020, helping Saudi Arabia’s SME ecosystem to contribute 35% of GDP and achieving a key Vision 2030 objective to diversify the Kingdom’s economy, while transitioning away from a reliance on oil and its derivatives.
Funding Gate has assisted over 2770 enterprises while automating the SME lending process from inquiry through to delivery, thus reducing average service delivery time from 86 days in December 2020 to 7 days in December 2021.
