Access to finance for innovators in the UK's environmental sector
Access to finance for innovators in the UK's environmental sector
Technological innovations are seen as one of the best solutions to mitigate the environmental impacts of economic activity. Yet, the innovative success of firms, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the environmental sector is dependent on the presence of appropriate external financing to support their innovative activity. In an attempt to understand the circumstances surrounding the financing of 330 UK SMEs from the environmental sector between 2007 and 2010, we investigate the relationship between different types of innovation activity and sources of external finance. We observe a clear division of labour between the three external sources of finance, namely, banks, venture capital and government in terms of the types of innovations they finance. We also identify that finance gap affects environmental SMEs with early-stage and less applied research projects. We discuss the challenges for UK environmental SMEs to engage in innovative activity and call for an increased government action in order to support innovative SMEs with early-stage projects and to instil confidence in the private investors by signalling long-term commitment.
clean technology, environmental sector, finance, venture capital, SME
1-27
Demirel, Pelin
687c839d-b7dc-4914-972a-293ab9f014c2
Parris, Stuart
22f91a73-a10b-4c02-bdea-ecba08e7d6ac
10 March 2015
Demirel, Pelin
687c839d-b7dc-4914-972a-293ab9f014c2
Parris, Stuart
22f91a73-a10b-4c02-bdea-ecba08e7d6ac
Demirel, Pelin and Parris, Stuart
(2015)
Access to finance for innovators in the UK's environmental sector.
Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, .
(doi:10.1080/09537325.2015.1019849).
Abstract
Technological innovations are seen as one of the best solutions to mitigate the environmental impacts of economic activity. Yet, the innovative success of firms, especially small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), in the environmental sector is dependent on the presence of appropriate external financing to support their innovative activity. In an attempt to understand the circumstances surrounding the financing of 330 UK SMEs from the environmental sector between 2007 and 2010, we investigate the relationship between different types of innovation activity and sources of external finance. We observe a clear division of labour between the three external sources of finance, namely, banks, venture capital and government in terms of the types of innovations they finance. We also identify that finance gap affects environmental SMEs with early-stage and less applied research projects. We discuss the challenges for UK environmental SMEs to engage in innovative activity and call for an increased government action in order to support innovative SMEs with early-stage projects and to instil confidence in the private investors by signalling long-term commitment.
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Published date: 10 March 2015
Keywords:
clean technology, environmental sector, finance, venture capital, SME
Organisations:
Centre for Innovation & Enterprise
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 377471
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/377471
ISSN: 0953-7325
PURE UUID: 590d77cd-d804-4e67-aa60-58d29b33f0e6
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Date deposited: 10 Jun 2015 15:26
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 20:04
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Author:
Pelin Demirel
Author:
Stuart Parris
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