...Mission and Operations: Fitch Ratings expects regional development agencies (RDAs) to take a bigger role in implementing anti-cyclical and development policies to comply with national legislation requiring the regions to post balanced budgets from 2015. They should also assist SMEs through easing their difficulties in accessing credit. A number of regions have in fact decentralised some of their responsibilities to RDAs, ranging from managing guarantee funds, supporting credit, employment, innovation and internationalisation of local SMEs. RDAs Alleviating Credit Crunch: Fitch also believes RDAs will increasingly promote SMEs' access to capital markets, catching up with the USA where non-banking sources, such as insurers and asset managers represent 80% of corporate-debt financing. According to the Bank of Italy, nationwide credit exposure to SMEs decreased by almost 2.5% in 2014 (4% in 2013), partly due to bank deleveraging. Unlike large corporations, bond issuance by SMEs is held back...
