Rural banking in China; estimating the potential of developing the rural banking system in Zhejiang province, and the impact of socioeconomic forces-culture

Abstract

Abstract The research is concerned with the cultural implications of the financing options made by the Chinese companies in the Zhejiang province. The research has focused on the province since it is one of the largest provincial economies in China, and has significant rural SME industry. The data on the conditions in the province has been collected using the questionnaire survey, and extensive literature review has been conducted. The total number of valid responses collected and used in the analysis is 100, and they are all from the top management and owners of the companies. The method of data analysis which has been used in the research is visual statistics, and the sampling method used by the research is random among the owners and management of the companies. As the findings indicate, there are strong tendencies which have been exhibited by the SMEs, and they all indicate that SMEs are highly likely to use informal financing. The consequences of this tendency have been explored, and the rational has been suggested. The suggested explanation is the lack of knowledge of benefits of financing in general, and IT being used to improve the financing function. Recommendations have been provided to improve the financing function for SMEs in Zhejiang