Let's help SMEs find a way out of the coronavirus pandemic crisis

The small and medium-sized enterprise sector plays a central role in the global economy. SMEs create a large percentage of jobs, drive innovation and serve as incubators for the multinationals of tomorrow. We see this first-hand in China, where SMEs account for 60 percent of China's GDP and provide employment for 80 percent of the workforce in cities.

The lockdowns imposed in countries around the world to contain the novel coronavirus pandemic have hit customer demand and SMEs hard. How are businesses weathering these difficult times and what role can we expect them to play in the global economic recovery?

Based on our (Standard Chartered Bank's) experience of supporting Chinese SMEs for more than 17 years, we have a few early observations, which we hope will inspire businesses elsewhere. Each market is at a different stage in the fight against the pandemic, and I believe we can learn from each other.

Many of the businesses we serve have managed to retain their employees by assigning them other tasks, such as upgrading internal systems or designing new products and services to facilitate business recovery. Some entrepreneurs have taken the opportunity to retrain their staff, in order to increase the value they create. And many of our clients have shifted their manufacturing or trading businesses to new product lines, based on the emerging opportunities they see. These businesses have adapted to the changing situation in order to survive, and provide a blueprint for others that may be able to do the same.

We often credit the 2002-03 severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) outbreak with fast-tracking the acceptance of e-commerce by people in China. Although it is too early to say for sure which trends the coronavirus pandemic will accelerate, I expect SME-driven hi-tech services to be one of them. The pandemic has created new customer needs, thereby generating opportunities for innovation, and this is where the SMEs can show their value, particularly in the technology sector.

Our client Csjbot, a small business based in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, quickly deployed robots to boost the fight against the virus. It used "Robot Amy", a room delivery service, to bring food to those in isolation centers, thereby reducing human contact and freeing up medical staff. It also deployed "Robot Aker" to work 24x7 at hospitals in Wuhan, Hubei province, enabling medical staff to deliver equipment to each other with one push of a button, and has posted "Robot Alice" to help teachers now that schools have reopened.

With most of the world still in lockdown, China's early signs of an economic rebound offer a light at the end of the tunnel. It is heartening to be able to reopen our China branches and launch a new sub-branch in Wuhan to support the domestic and international growth of local businesses. It's very encouraging to see that many Chinese entrepreneurs are now implementing recovery plans, though any economic recovery remains vulnerable to potential new waves of infection.

If the SMEs are to help us reach that light at the end of the tunnel, we need to support them not just through the crisis, but also as they emerge from it. We need to continue lending and be patient with those developing digital and intelligent solutions, as they need support early on in their research and development stages.

Banks should not only make prudent judgements in risk control and credit assessments, but also take the lead, and coordinate the resources so the SMEs get the support they need to grow.

With our team of relationship managers specializing in SME needs, we at Standard Chartered can play an important and rewarding role, as we know that our clients' success will help create jobs and make significant contributions to the economy.

SMEs can help bring much-needed social stability, innovation and dynamism to the markets where they operate, and their agility could help economies recover. But they can't do it on their own. Together, we must help get them the resources they need to pave a way out of this crisis for all of us.

The author is head of business banking in China, Standard Chartered Bank.
The views don't necessarily reflect those of China Daily.