Article: Gender as a determinant of informal capital in the financing of small firms' start-ups: Swedish data Journal: International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business (IJESB) 2015 Vol.24 No.2 pp.249 - 267 Abstract: This research explores the differences in informal capital acquisition between female- and male-owned firms in the start-up stage in Sweden. A binary logistic regression model is used to analyse a sample including 836 female- and 1928 male-owned firms in 2008, providing 47,022 observations. The results indicate that the main explanatory variable, gender, is significant in distinguishing between female- and male-owned firms with regards to the use of informal capital in terms of loans from family members. Thus, female-owned firms tend to rely more on loans from family members than male-owned firms. The findings also indicate that one control variable, namely owners' previous experience of starting up a company, negatively influences the use of loans from family members as a financing source in the start-up stage. This study is based on a unique and large sample including many different variables compared with previous research. Knowledge on the differences between Swedish female- and male-owned firms in using informal capital in the start-up stage is limited and ambiguous. The presented results contribute to research into small firm financing by adding insight into the relationships between informal capital acquisition, gender, and other relevant variables. Inderscience Publishers - linking academia, business and industry through research

Title: Gender as a determinant of informal capital in the financing of small firms' start-ups: Swedish data

Authors: Saeid Abbasian; Darush Yazdanfar

Addresses: Department of Tourism Studies and Geography, Mid Sweden University, Regementsgatan 25-27, Östersund 831 25, Sweden ' Department of Business, Economics and Law, Mid Sweden University, Holmgatan 10, 851 70 Sundsvall, Sweden

Abstract: This research explores the differences in informal capital acquisition between female- and male-owned firms in the start-up stage in Sweden. A binary logistic regression model is used to analyse a sample including 836 female- and 1928 male-owned firms in 2008, providing 47,022 observations. The results indicate that the main explanatory variable, gender, is significant in distinguishing between female- and male-owned firms with regards to the use of informal capital in terms of loans from family members. Thus, female-owned firms tend to rely more on loans from family members than male-owned firms. The findings also indicate that one control variable, namely owners' previous experience of starting up a company, negatively influences the use of loans from family members as a financing source in the start-up stage. This study is based on a unique and large sample including many different variables compared with previous research. Knowledge on the differences between Swedish female- and male-owned firms in using informal capital in the start-up stage is limited and ambiguous. The presented results contribute to research into small firm financing by adding insight into the relationships between informal capital acquisition, gender, and other relevant variables.

Keywords: female-owned firms; women entrepreneurs; small business finance; funding sources; gender; entrepreneurship; informal capital; small firms; start-ups; Sweden; start-up financing; family member loans; family members; capital acquisition.

DOI: 10.1504/IJESB.2015.067290

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Small Business, 2015 Vol.24 No.2, pp.249 - 267

Received: 11 Feb 2014
Accepted: 24 Aug 2014
Published online: 02 Feb 2015 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article

Title: Gender as a determinant of informal capital in the financing of small firms' start-ups: Swedish data

Keep up-to-date