At Annual Summit, Calls for Regulators to Reform System to Foster Growth
WASHINGTON, D.C.— A new U.S. Chamber Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness (CCMC) financial services survey conducted by Morning Consult shows that, at the outset of a new administration in Washington, D.C., small business leaders feel optimistic about the future of their enterprises and view support from financial services as critical to their ability to expand and succeed.
The results, released at the U.S. Chamber’s 11th annual Capital Markets Summit: “Financing American Business,” underscore the importance of access to capital for businesses, especially smaller firms.
Seventy-seven percent of respondents indicated that capital and cash provided by banks and other financial services are important for helping small businesses succeed, and 75 percent said having access to loans was either somewhat important or very important for starting or growing their business. However, small business executives leading companies with 10 or fewer employees said their access to capital has not improved; just 15 percent said it has gotten better compared to a year ago. By comparison, among those who lead businesses with 101-500 employees, 56 percent said their access to capital had improved in the last year.
“Growth is at a premium in today’s economy, and especially for small businesses. For those smaller operations, it’s more difficult to get credit, and as a result, more difficult to grow,” said David Hirschmann, president and CEO of CCMC. “Loans, credit, and supportive financial services are crucial in taking a company from an idea to a success story and everything in between, so it’s incumbent upon our lawmakers and regulatory decision-makers to ensure the health and vitality of that critical capital infrastructure. Businesses are operating with newfound confidence and with a built-in expectation that pro-growth policies will emerge, and if Washington won’t deliver, Main Street can’t deliver either.”
The results of the financial services survey, which was funded by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, can be found online here.
The U.S. Chamber’s 11th annual Capital Markets Summit convened policymakers, company executives, and industry leaders for discussion on how to create a regulatory environment that fosters a healthy, robust financial services industry in order to drive economic growth. CCMC developed an action plan for the new administration and Congress, called “Restarting the Growth Engine: A Plan to Reform America’s Capital Markets,” which outlines more than 100 recommendations for reforming the regulatory system.
Since its inception in 2007, the Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness has led a bipartisan effort to modernize and strengthen the outmoded regulatory systems that have governed our capital markets. The CCMC is committed to working aggressively with the administration, Congress, and global leaders to implement reforms to strengthen the economy, restore investor confidence, and ensure well-functioning capital markets.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.
