Bank Credit, Trade Credit Or No Credit: Evidence From The Surveys Of Small Business Finances

In this study, the authors use data from the Surveys of Small Business Finances (SSBF) to provide new information about the use of credit by small businesses in the United States. More specifically, they first analyze firms that do and do not use credit; and then analyze why some firms use trade credit while others use bank credit. They find that one in five small firms uses no credit, one in five uses trade credit only, one in five uses bank credit only, and two in five use both bank credit and trade credit.