Dun & Bradstreet Information Services India Pvt. Ltd, the leading global provider of B2B data, insights, and AI-driven platforms, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with BSE to create an ecosystem for promoting, aiding, and fostering the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country. This partnership will help SMEs in India to increase their visibility, expand access to global markets, find potential customers, uncover new suppliers and channel partners, manage risk and identify growth opportunities.

The Indian government has set a target for the country to become a $5 trillion economy by FY2025 and SMEs will play a critical role in this growth journey. This segment is expected to contribute by 50 per cent of GDP by FY2025 from current 30 per cent. To achieve that target, SMEs must contribute 75 per cent to the incremental GDP between today and FY2025. This represents a significant contribution of SMEs to India’s growth and they will require increased support from the government, policymakers and business service providers.

Speaking about the partnership, Avinash Gupta, MD & CEO, India, Dun & Bradstreet said, “Dun & Bradstreet has been engaged with Indian MSMEs since the past two decades, providing them with the necessary business intelligence to help them grow and thrive, even in challenging times. As countries are witnessing second and third waves of the pandemic amidst battling the deepest recession since the World War II, SMEs are the worst affected across countries, sectors and segments, and India is no exception. In India, more than 99 per cent of businesses belong to Micro, Small and Medium category and 94 per cent of them are unorganised. Our recent survey conducted in the last quarter of 2020 reveals that the three topmost challenges that might impede SMEs to scale up their businesses are market access (42per cent), improving the overall productivity (37 per cent), and having access to More Finance (34per cent). By working with BSE, we expect to play a pivotal role in enabling the eco-system required to accelerate SME growth and help achieve the government GDP contribution target of 50per cent of GDP by FY 2025.”

Commenting on this collaboration, Ajay Thakur, Head, BSE, said, “This collaborative effort will enable SMEs and Startups who are currently listed on BSE SME & Startups platform, or expected to be listed, to avail of Dun & Bradstreet business information services at a special price, that will not only strengthen their credibility but will also expand the scope of business opportunities for them. The current economic situation may propel more SMEs and Startups to avail of these services in order to further improve their businesses. This MoU will help both BSE and Dun & Bradstreet to reach to maximum SMEs across the country for offering their products which will be beneficial to them and bring growth in their business. This will also create inclusive growth and employment in the country”.

The new partnership will provide Indian SMEs with access to Dun & Bradstreet’s suite of data and analytics solutions via BSE SME & Start-up Platform. Products like the Dun & Bradstreet D-U-N-S® RegisteredTM Solutions and Credibility Reports (credit on self) can help MSMEs build credibility both domestically and globally. Other products like D&B iAccess and D&B Hoovers can help SMEs find and access potential buyers and business partners around the world to drive sustainable growth with Dun & Bradstreet’s leading data and analytics. Dun & Bradstreet India will also partner with BSE to provide customized training and certification programs to help SMEs better navigate the ever-changing global business environment. Dun & Bradstreet India will also share their SME database and clients with BSE so that BSE can approach these SMEs and create awareness about the benefits of listing on BSE SME Platform. As a combined effort, BSE and Dun & Bradstreet India will jointly organize events to create awareness about their respective products and services among SMEs.

BSE became the first stock exchange to get the approval from SEBI and had launched its SME platform on March 13, 2012. So far 337 companies listed on the BSE SME Platform have raised Rs. 3,498 crore from the market and the total market capitalization of 337 companies as of May 12, 2021, is Rs. 25,137 crore. Out of which 99 companies are migrated to BSE Main Board. BSE is the market leader in this segment with a market share of 61 percent.