Micro-SMEs: A special case

Micro-firms are vitally important for the economy of most countries, not only developing economies, but also advanced industrial economies, as shown by the relevant statistics. For example, ‘In 2007, 89% of firms in the United States (U.S.) had less than 20 employees and 79% had less than 10' (Cunningham et al., 2014). According to Eurostat (2015), 29.2% (i.e. about 30%) of the EU employees work in micro-enterprises (<10 employees), while about 20% are employed in small firms (<50 employees). In other words, about half of the European workforce is employed in micro- and small firms. The average contribution for the period 2008-2013 of micro-firms to value added of the euro area economy was 22% (ECB, 2013).