Between 2008 and 2011, the number of newly set up companies employing at least 10 people continued to grow. Only a few other countries, including Germany, Luxembourg, Austria and Sweden, can boast the same, according to Deutsche Bank and Eurostat. Apart from that small group, the economic slowdown had a negative impact on most countries: Spain and Portugal; Latvia, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and Slovenia.
The crisis was particularly detrimental to Slovakian SMEs as the country adopted the euro in January 2009.
The unfortunate moment of joining the Eurozone at that time resulted in the number of newly established companies with at least four employees falling by almost 50 per cent. The situation improved in 2011 but the number of active companies is still lower by about 40 per cent than before the crisis.
At the same time, according to the European Commission, employment in Polish SMEs was stable even in the most difficult moments of the crisis. After two days of a slight decrease and two more years of stagnation, Polish SMEs began employing again. Deutsche Bank analysts emphasise Poland’s position in the World Bank’s Doing Business 2014 report, where the country ranked 45th, 10 places higher than in 2013. In the same report, both in 2013 and 2014, Poland ranked third, as far as getting credit was concerned. This means financing options was almost unlimited, say DB analysts.
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