We have always heard that evaluating a commercial credit is not the same as evaluating an SME credit, but we have never stopped to determine the differences.
Precisely this article aims to identify them, considering the experience gained over thirteen years working in banking and microcredit entities.
The main difference that I have been able to identify is in the treatment of the Statements of Profits and Losses. Accounting practice is respected in the evaluation of commercial loans; while in SME loans the financial information is adjusted to the needs of the evaluator.
Thus we find that while commercial loans work with ACCUMULATED information, SME loans work with information from a normal or typical MONTH.
Likewise, while in commercial credits, financial expenses refer to canceled interest; SME loans refer to the total monthly installments (principal + interest) of financial obligations, as a result of the business activity, that the debtor has.
On the other hand, in SME loans a new item is added to the Statement of Profits and Losses: family expenses, corresponding to the expenses of the family unit, such as, debts for mortgage loans and credit cards, expenses for education, for basic services, cable service, mobility, illness, etc.
On the other hand, in SME loans, the Surplus allows evaluating whether the business can cover the installment of a new loan, for which the Quota / Surplus ratio will be compared with certain ratios, which will vary depending on whether it is a new client or recurring. While in commercial loans, the evaluation will be more complex, depending on whether
it is a loan for working capital or fixed assets. For example, in the case of a loan for fixed assets, EBITDA or Net Cash Flow will be used; and for working capital, the operating cycle expressed in nuevos soles.
As can be seen, the analysis is not the same for both types of credits; and to overlook this is a serious error that is still observed in microcredit entities, Cajas Municipales and Cooperatives, which seek to copy the mold of an SME loan into a commercial loan, with disastrous results. So I think it is time to correct.
