Oxford Economics for Leaseurope AISBL, the European Federation of Leasing Company Associations

1 The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs July 2015 The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs July 2015 Acknowledgments Leaseurope wishes to recognise the support received from Netsol, a global provider of enterprise IT solutions, with core focus on asset finance, wholesale finance and leasing software. Benefactors As shown throughout this report, leasing is a crucial form of finance for SMEs. Leaseurope is grateful for the contribution of the following European leasing companies who have subscribed to the report’s benefactors programme: ABN AMRO Lease ALD Automotive Alphabet International Banco Santander BCC Lease Belfius Lease BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions Deutsche Leasing DnB Finans GE Capital ING Group Leasing & Factoring Investec Asset Finance LBBW Leasing LeasePlan Corporation Raiffeisen Leasing Societe Generale Equipment Finance Toyota Material Handling Europe The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs July 2015 Disclaimer This report has been prepared by Oxford Economics for Leaseurope AISBL, the European Federation of Leasing Company Associations. All information in this report is copyright © Leaseurope AISBL. Any use of information must acknowledge the source as follows “Oxford Economics, The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs, 2015. A report prepared for Leaseurope.” Because of the uncertainty of future events and circumstances and because the contents are based on data and information provided by third parties upon which Oxford Economics has relied in producing this report in good faith, Oxford Economics does not warrant that its advice, recommendations or the contents of this report are accurate or achievable and neither Oxford Economics nor Leaseurope AISBL will be liable for the contents of any of the foregoing or reliance thereon. The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs July 2015 Contents Executive summary ...................................................................................................................... 1 Glossary of key terms and abbreviations ................................................................................... 7 1. Introduction and background .................................................................................................. 9 1.1 What is leasing? ...................................................................................................................................... 9 1.2 Evidence on the use of leasing ............................................................................................................. 10 1.2.1 Annual Statistical Enquiry (ASE) ................................................................................................. 10 1.2.2 Survey on the access to finance of enterprises (SAFE) ............................................................. 11 1.3 Objectives of the study .......................................................................................................................... 13 1.4 Methodology .......................................................................................................................................... 14 1.4.1 Approach ..................................................................................................................................... 14 1.4.2 Financial decision-makers within surveyed firms ........................................................................ 16 1.4.3 Expert Group consultation ........................................................................................................... 16 2. The market for leasing to European SMEs ........................................................................... 17 2.1 How many SMEs use leasing? .............................................................................................................. 17 2.1.1 Proportions using leasing by firm size ........................................................................................ 17 2.1.2 Proportions using leasing compared to other forms of finance ................................................... 18 2.1.3 Proportions using leasing across different countries .................................................................. 19 2.1.4 Proportions using leasing across sectors ................................................................................... 20 2.2 Leasing penetration ............................................................................................................................... 21 2.2.1 Penetration rates by country ....................................................................................................... 21 2.2.2 Leasing penetration by sector ..................................................................................................... 22 2.2.3 Leasing penetration by firm size ................................................................................................. 23 2.2.4 Leasing’s role compared to other forms of finance – penetration rates ...................................... 24 2.3 Have non-users used leasing in the past? ............................................................................................ 28 2.4 The size of the market for leasing by SMEs .......................................................................................... 29 3. What do SMEs lease, why and through which channels? ................................................... 32 3.1 What assets do SMEs lease? ............................................................................................................... 32 3.2 How do SMEs access leasing products? .............................................................................................. 36 3.3 Why do SMEs choose leasing? ............................................................................................................. 38 3.4 Why don’t SMEs use more leasing? ..................................................................................................... 43 4. The importance of leasing for exporting and growth firms ................................................. 46 4.1 Exporting SMEs ..................................................................................................................................... 46 4.1.1 Proportion of exporting SMEs ..................................................................................................... 46 4.1.2 Proportion of exporting lessees and non-users .......................................................................... 48 4.1.3 Leasing penetration rates for exporting SMEs ............................................................................ 49 4.2 Growth SMEs ........................................................................................................................................ 50 The Use of Leasing Amongst European SMEs July 2015 4.2.1 Proportion of growth SMEs ......................................................................................................... 50 4.2.2 Proportion of growth lessees and non-users .............................................................................. 51 4.2.3 Leasing penetration rates for growth SMEs ................................................................................ 52 5. Leasing’s role in driving investment and growth ................................................................. 54 5.1 Do lessees invest more than non-users of leasing? ............................................................................. 54 5.1.1 Investment by firm size and sector.............................................................................................. 54 5.1.2 Investment by exporting and growth SMEs ................................................................................ 56 5.1.3 Leasing compared to other forms of finance ............................................................................... 57 5.2 SME life cycle and access to finance .................................................................................................... 57 5.3 Investment and leasing by European SMEs in 2014 ............................................................................ 58 6. Leasing’s contribution to future European economic growth ............................................ 62 6.1 Macro-economic impact of greater use of leasing by SMEs ................................................................. 62 6.1.1 Methodology for estimating the impact of more leasing by SMEs .............................................. 62 6.1.2 The macroeconomic impact of greater use of leasing by European SMEs ................................ 63 6.2 Leasing’s contribution to economic growth ........................................................................................... 67 Appendix 1: Survey sample ....................................................................................................... 68 Appendix 2: Interview questionnaire ......................................................................................... 69 Appendix 3: Detailed breakdown of survey results .................................................................. 73 Penetration rates by country and firm size ...................................................................................................... 73 Average investment by country, sector and lessee/non-user.......................................................................... 76 Penetration rates by age of firm and sector....................................................................................................

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