Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) Access to Finance in Selected East Asian Economies, by Charlies Harvie, Sothea Oum and Dionisius A. Narjoko, (eds), ERIA Research Project Report 2010-14, Jakarta: ERIA, 2011, 384 pp.

Access to finance is one of the most critical problems facing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across the globe. This problem is much more critical in less developed financial markets, particularly in the East Asian region. With the present nature of new competition, access to capital for business start-up and expansion is much more crucial for SMEs to fully participate and strongly compete in the more integrated local, regional or global markets. The presence of this book in such a turbulent economic environment is commendable as it updates the most recent status of financial constraint and access confronting SMEs. The book is organised in 11 chapters. It begins with a general overview of access to finance and its implications for SMEs in the East Asian region.