Survey: Only half of all Finnish SMEs keep an eye on enterprise value

Each year thousands of companies find themselves in a situation where they have to find a new owner for their business. Despite this, more than half (56%) of them have not made any plans for the situation. Retention of value is a particularly low priority in companies with the smallest number of employees and the lowest turnover.

- It should definitely be a greater concern. Making sure that the company retains its value should be a top priority and the owner should also develop the business operations throughout the company’s life cycle. This helps to ensure that the company is in good shape when a new owner has to be found, says Katja Keitaanniemi, Executive Vice President, SMEs at Finnvera.

Finnvera, the Federation of Finnish Enterprises and the Ministry of Employment and the Economy jointly conduct the SME Barometer Survey twice a year. In this year’s survey the respondents were specifically asked about changes in ownership. About 6,000 SMEs took part in the spring 2016 barometer and the findings on ownership changes are based on the responses provided by them.

Boosting growth through company acquisitions

Even though company acquisitions may be a good way of expanding business, some 80 per cent of all SMEs taking part in the survey said that they are not interested in acquiring other companies or business operations. However, strongly growth-oriented companies see more opportunities in this area and about 40 per cent of them said that they would be interested in such acquisitions.

- From the perspective of growth, acquiring an existing company would open up new opportunities and it might also be smarter economically than organic growth. A company acquisition is also a good idea for new entrepreneurs because that would give them a well-tested business concept for further development, explains Anssi Kujala, Deputy Managing Director of the Federation of Finnish Enterprises.

The Yrityspörssi website of the Federation of Finnish Enterprises is a place where companies are sold and acquired. It is Finland’s largest market place for SMEs and nearly 25,000 people interested in company acquisitions check the ads on the site each month. Yrityspörssi now also provides basic information about valuation, business practices, financing and taxation. In addition to the nationwide Yrityspörssi, there are also ten regional Yrityspörssi websites.

Further information:

Katja Keitaanniemi, Executive Vice President, SMEs, Finnvera plc, tel. 029 460 2888

Anssi Kujala, Deputy Managing Director, Federation of Finnish Enterprises, tel. 0400 567 925

Finnvera provides financing for the start, growth and internationalisation of enterprises and guarantees against risks arising from exports. Finnvera strengthens the operating potential and competitiveness of Finnish enterprises by offering loans, guarantees and other services associated with the financing of exports. The risks included in financing are shared between Finnvera and other providers of financing. Finnvera is a specialised financing company owned by the State of Finland and it is the official Export Credit Agency (ECA) of Finland. https://www.finnvera.fi/eng/https://www.finnvera.fi/eng/Finnvera/Media/Media

The Federation of Finnish Enterprises promotes the interests of small and medium sized enterprises in Finland. With a membership of more than 115,000, 400 local associations, 20 regional organisations and 63 branch organisations we are Finland’s largest business federation. Self-employed individuals account for half of our members, while the other half consists of employer enterprises. Our members provide employment for about 650,000 people. Further information: http://www.yrittajat.fi/en-GB/.

http://www.yritysporssi.fi/en/