The Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor (ASM) is a knowledge-sharing product developed as a key resource for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise development policies in Asia and the Pacific. The ASM 2020 Volume III is a Thematic Chapter on financial technology (fintech) loans to tricycle drivers in the Philippines, addressing how fintech affects the welfare of the self-employed and contributes to the development of country’s local economies.

This is a special chapter of the Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor (ASM) focusing on the impact of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in developing Asia. The study is based on findings from rapid MSME surveys conducted from March to May 2020 in Indonesia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, the Philippines, and Thailand. The ASM is a knowledge-sharing product series developed as a key resource for MSME development policies in Asia and the Pacific.

The development of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) remains key to promoting inclusive growth in developing economies in Asia and the Pacific. The Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor (ASM) provides data and analysis as a resource for evidence-based policy design on MSME development. The ASM 2020 focuses on Southeast Asia and this first volume reviews the financial and non-financial conditions of MSMEs at country and regional level. In future years, the ASM will expand its country coverage to other regions.

This final volume of the Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor 2020 sets out ADB’s work so far on a new composite index called the Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Development Index (SME-DI) to help guide support for the development of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The SME-DI aims to measure MSME development and access to finance using multivariate analysis of national MSME data. The volume includes the results of testing a pilot index using data from Southeast Asia.

This thematic third volume of the Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor 2021 focuses on the digitalization of microfinance in Bangladesh. The MSME sector provides much of the income in rural Bangladesh, but its growth is constrained by limited access to affordable finance. This volume reports on a 2021 baseline study carried out in Bangladesh to pilot a randomized controlled trial to determine whether a digitalized group-based credit scheme could be introduced at an affordable price. The findings provide justification for further study on the digitalization of microfinance.

The Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor provides data and analysis as a resource for evidence-based policy design. This year's edition focuses on South Asia. This first volume reviews micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) at the country and regional levels. It covers Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka, and examines MSME development, access to finance, and policies and regulations. It notes that revitalizing MSMEs by channeling more growth capital to them will be key to a resilient economic recovery from the pandemic. It highlights opportunities in formalizing MSMEs and connecting them to international markets, expanding digital skills, fostering technology-based start-ups, and supporting youth and women entrepreneurs.

The Asia Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise Monitor (ASM) is a knowledge-sharing product developed as a key resource for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) development policies in Asia and the Pacific. The ASM 2021 Volume IV reports on a technical exercise for developing an empirically rigorous index that measures various dimensions affecting MSME development in developing Asia.