Financial crisis of 2008 still perceptible

The global financial crisis has left a lingering mark on entrepreneurship across the globe, with the majority of entrepreneurs (95%) relying on their own funding for start-up ventures, a new study shows. The global financial downturn has left entrepreneurs more reliant on their own funding, while new sources of entrepreneurial finance such as crowd-sourcing are also gaining in popularity, according to a new report on entrepreneurial finance from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM).

Despite the fact that the average cost of starting a business has dropped, say the authors of the GEM, access to finance is one of the most serious problems for businesses in many economies, with small and medium-sized businesses struggling the most. The GEM 2015-2016 Special Report on Entrepreneurial Finance studied entrepreneurial finance patterns across the globe.

This recent financial crisis of 2008, the worst of the last 80 years, has had a profound effect on the economic as well as the entrepreneurial landscape. Around sixty economies participate in the annual GEM research. The last special report on entrepreneurial finance, which draws on data collected during the annual research cycle, was released ten years ago. Since then, availability of funds, sources of funding as well as the cost of starting a business have all evolved.

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