Technical resources

Governance, CSR and SMEs in emerging economies

As part of ESRC’s seminar series on governance, CSR and SMEs in emerging economies, ACCA hosted a conference on 19 November 2014.

Back in the game: global SME performance review 2013/14

This report reviews the performance of SMEs around the world during 2013/14. It is the second ACCA–IMA global SME performance review and compares SME performance with findings from the first review.

ACCA and the Enterprise Research Centre

ACCA is proud to sit on the ERC’s Stakeholder Advisory Board, chaired by Lucy Armstrong, alongside some of the UK’s leading business associations.

Building the finance function in growing businesses

This discussion paper presents views and recommendations on how to build the finance function to support growth in SMEs.

ACCA alternative finance conference 2014

In this video ACCA senior economic analyst Manos Schizas welcomes delegates to the 2nd ACCA Alternative Finance Conference.

Alternative finance showcase: Money & Co

This presentation by chief lending officer Chris Lake and head of credit analysis Toby Furnivall, of Money & Co explains their business model and their offering to businesses and investors.

Roundtable discussion: The future of access to finance

As part of the 2nd ACCA Alternative Finance Conference, Steve Edwards FCCA, chairs a roundtable discussion on the latest developments in business financing in the UK and beyond.

Showcase Q&A: Challenging the challengers

In this video, a panel of representatives from new UK alternative finance providers take questions about their business models and their thoughts on the UK business financing landscape.

Alternative finance showcase: Oaknorth

This presentation, by Richard Davies, CEO of Oaknorth, discusses their intended offering of lending and savings products for SMES and investors.

Alternative finance showcase: The British Business Bank

Peter Wilson, managing director of The British Business Bank’s investment programme, explains the Bank’s structure and objectives, their activity to date, and what the future holds.

Expert Q&A: Financing future business

In this video, a panel of experts discuss research findings on the future of business financing, and some of the more promising business models on the horizon.

An introduction to reverse factoring and supply chain finance

Enrico Camerinelli, senior analyst at Aite Group discusses the business case for supply chain finance, including some findings on the potential size of the market for financial institutions.

Banking on intangibles

Martin Brassell, CEO and co-founder of IP and intangibles consultancy Inngot. presents the findings of his firm’s far-reaching research for the UK Intellectual Property Office.

The FCA’s approach to the regulation of crowdfunding

Jason Pope and Susan Cooper, both technical specialists with the Financial Conduct Authority, discuss oversight of the p2p and crowdfunding sector.

An introduction to challenger banks and the emerging fin-tech sector

Ian Dowson FCCA discusses his research into the new emerging business models that promise to change the world of business financing.

A study of the business case for supply chain finance

This report considers the business case for supply chain finance and provides a checklist of costs, risks and complications to be considered.

ACCA research into e-invoicing adoption

ACCA's research reviews the extent and the drivers of e-invoicing adoption among UK SMEs.

Financing SMEs in Cyprus: no stone left unturned?

The report presents the findings of an independent study by RTD Talos into ways of improving SMEs’ access to finance in Cyprus, as well as ACCA’s response and policy recommendations.

The ACCA Global Forum for SMEs

A unique platform for promoting the role of SMEs in the global economy.

Small business appeals champions and non-economic regulators

Comments from ACCA to the Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS).

ACCA's four inputs framework

ACCA produces research and thought leadership on a wide range of diverse topics, from micro-finance to the capital markets.

The growth challenge

This report reviews the policy environment and support structures supporting SME growth in nine countries. It draws on the Virtuous Circle of Enterprise Growth framework and builds on a series of interviews with policymakers and SME advocates.

Proposed amendments to the international financial reporting standard for small and medium-sized entities

Comments from ACCA to the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB)

ACCA insights - overview

ACCA insights is a monthly ezine that reviews ACCA's work on the key policy issues of the last month.

Building a responsible payment culture

Comments from ACCA the Department for Business Innovation & Skills.

Zombie companies

As expectations of an economic recovery start to grow, so too does a concern that an army of businesses, so-called zombie companies, are holding back the recovery, tying up capital and resources.

E-invoicing adoption by UK SMEs: 2012–13 estimates

This report updates and expands ACCA’s 2012 estimates of e-invoicing adoption among UK SMEs, and investigates the relationship between e-invoicing and SMEs’ access to finance.

Financial education for entrepreneurs: what next?

This report considers how the global agenda on financial literacy, capability and education relates to entrepreneurs, and reviews the latest evidence on the effectiveness of such interventions.

Zombie companies: just a bad dream?

Q3 of 2013 saw the first signs of a recovery in the UK, and with it a debate about the existence and prospects of so-called ‘zombie’ companies.

Connecting capital markets: the Nairobi Security Exchange Growth Enterprise Market Segment

This paper draws on interviews with Nairobi Security Exchange (NSE) officials as well as coverage in the African and international financial press to tell the story of the Growth Enterprise Market Segment (GEMS), the Nairobi-based board targeted at small and medium-sized enterprises. It is part of a series of ACCA case studies looking into the shared experiences of regulators, exchange operators, investors and listed firms in emerging capital markets.

Five things we’ve learned about SMEs during the downturn

[10/10/2013] What has the past few years taught us about SMEs, and what will this mean for your business in the months to come?

Surviving the recession and the recovery: the SME story

This report provides a unique insight into how SMEs have survived and thrived the latest period of global economic developments and drawing lessons for the future.

SMEs and foreign exchange risk: are small and medium-sized accountancy practices up to speed?

This report explores the role of accountancy practitioners in managing the foreign exchange exposures of SME clients, and what the accountancy profession could do to improve its offering to small businesses.

Tapping into SME international potential

ACCA, July 2013. This paper presents a number of recommendations for increasing SME presence in international trade. Aimed at policy makers and broader business support stakeholders, the paper identifies critical success factors that hinder cross-border trade for SMEs, as well as areas in need of further development that remain under-exploited by policy makers and business owners alike.

In safe hands: the future of financial services

Gill Ringland from SAMI Consulting discusses the findings of a scenario analysis project carried out by her firm and the Long Finance Forum of Futurists (L3F).

Hedging FX risk: taking stock of the challenge for mid-caps and SMEs

The first output from ACCA's 2013 Trade Finance project is a research report produced in association with Kantox FX.

Protecting stakeholder interests in SME companies

John Davies, March 2013. This report discusses how four different countries – the UK, the US, Australia and Singapore – see the role of accounting information in protecting third-party interests in SME companies.

Accountants for small businesses

ACCA, March 2013. Accountants for Small Business is a campaign aiming to raise awareness of the value of professional accountants in SMEs. This report is the centrepiece of the campaign, which will build partnerships between ACCA and business associations, government agencies, and service providers in order to provide practical resources and support for SMEs investing in internal finance functions.

Building your financial capabilities: a guide for growing businesses

This guide is an essential tool for setting up and managing good financial management practices for small businesses. It outlines the systems and tools needed by the start up business, and continues through to the needs of the growing business developing more sophisticated financial capabilities.

Guide to...consolidated accounts for business

Consolidated accounts is the term used when businesses under common control need to be incorporated into a single set of accounts.

Use of e-invoicing by SMEs

This report reviews the extent and the drivers of e-invoicing adoption among UK SMEs. Its concludes that UK SMEs have the potential to send hundreds of billions of pounds’ worth of e-invoices, which could improve their access to some forms of external finance. Nonetheless, adoption generally depends on the initiative of customers rather than SMEs themselves. This report was commissioned by the UK Department for Business for the UK National E-invoicing Forum. It was prepared by ACCA using evidence from the BDRC Continental SME Finance Monitor.

Embedding sustainability in SMEs

This paper presents the ACCA Global Forum for SMEs’ recommendations for the development of a series of SME-specific measures and approaches that will need to be adopted by governments, the business support community and the accountancy profession, if current efforts to engage SMEs in sustainable business practices are to gain significant momentum.

Managing cashflow guides

This collection of 10 guides can be helpful to small business clients as a quick reference and to practitioners as a trigger for more in-depth discussions on cashflow and related services.

Environmental aspects of sustainability, SMEs and the role of the accountant

ACCA research report 128, by J. Spence, G. Agyemang and L. Rinaldi.

High growth SMEs: understanding the leaders of the recovery

ACCA, July 2012. This report discusses the challenges, difficulties and the successes that Growth Oriented Entrepreneurs have in the US, European and BRICSA (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) and compares them to an international benchmark created by this study. The implications of the findings for governments, financiers and advisors are considered in terms of what support entrepreneurs need to build sustainable companies and thereby continue to stimulate their domestic and global economies.

Making capital markets work in emerging and frontier economies: case studies

This paper presents five case studies on the development of capital markets in emerging and frontier economies. These first-hand accounts reveal the crucial human, social and regulatory capital that capital markets rely on and demonstrate how much local regulators and operators around the world can learn from each other.

Access to finance for SMEs: a global agenda

ACCA, June 2012. This paper presents ACCA’s’ recommendations for the development of a visible and consistent global agenda on SME access to finance. It calls for intergovernmental organisations to develop and support a consistent platform for sharing best practice. It also encourages national governments to engage in this process, developing a long-lasting change in SME financing across the world.

In search of innovative solutions: report of the discussions from the FEE roundtable series 'access to finance for SMEs'

FEE SMP Task Force. This document reflects the outcome of debates held in expert roundtables organised by FEE, the Federation of European Accountants.

SMEs and their advisers: measuring trust and confidence

ACCA research report 127, by E. Schizas, R. Jarvis and N. Daskalakis.

Basel III and SMEs: getting the trade-off right

The provisions of Basel III, the global framework governing the regulation of bank capital, liquidity and leverage, will, for the coming years, determine the supply and cost of capital to businesses globally. The financial crisis presented policymakers with a choice between promoting business growth and safeguarding financial stability. This paper discusses how Basel III can be adapted to reflect the appropriate trade-off between the two.