The latest Greenwich Market Pulse did find that, despite the overall pessimistic perspective, 30 percent of companies expect to increase their capital expenditures (capex) this year. Among those, 66 percent plan to finance those projects using cash or retained earnings. Another 20 percent expect to reduce their capex in 2023, and 73 percent of those companies are going to reduce their borrowing and rely more on cash. A full 15 percent of companies that expect capex to decrease also plan to fully suspend borrowing in 2023.

For examples of small to midsize companies that successfully leveraged the pandemic business environment to improve treasury operations, watch an on-demand Treasury & Risk webcast that explores how the small treasury teams at NWR, Inc. and TeamViewer achieved big results with their innovative, award-winning initiatives.

Coalition Greenwich also reports that the tight credit markets have not yet led most small to midsize businesses to seek out new lenders, but adds that the current environment presents an opportunity for private equity and other providers of credit. More than three-quarters (76%) of survey respondents claimed they are unlikely to switch to a non-traditional financial service provider or financial technology company. But 15 percent are somewhat likely and 9 percent are more likely than that to try an alternative to a traditional bank.

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Can Small Businesses Still Borrow?

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