Financing for SMEs in Malaysia

According to the SME Annual Report 2012, small and medium enterprises represent 98.5% of the approximately 78,000 companies in Malaysia, with the remaining 1.5% made up of multinational and public-listed companies.

In many developed nations, SMEs are thought to contribute between 40% and 60% to gross domestic product and 60% and 70% of the employment, but the SME sector in Malaysia has not reached the mark yet.

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin recently said, “SMEs in Malaysia contribute 31% to the GDP and 59% to employment. The SME sector has a lot of catching up to do as we work towards achieving developed nation status by 2020”.