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Small Businesses - Big Challenges, Big Opportunities

The global health crisis impacted businesses around the globe in vastly different ways. Small- and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) experienced the greatest hardships for a variety of reasons. 

The stresses and successes of businesses around the world vary based on factors ranging from a business' location and sector to their local market's business climate and their ability to go digital. The challenges were very real for many disrupted businesses and many continue to struggle. However, disruption also bred innovation, as a host of new digital businesses were created to meet evolving needs and new market opportunities.

This report, developed by the Mastercard Economics Institute and the fifth in Mastercard's Recovery Insights series, looks at

  • small and medium-sized business closures and spending declines

  • how a digital presence impacts an SMB’s sustainability

  • sector performance for small vs. large businesses 

  • the role of location in whether SMBs survived

"Globally, small businesses that closed early in the pandemic were about 3x as likely as larger businesses to remain closed long term.”

Gain access to “Recovery Insights: Small Business Reset” to learn more about the pandemic’s impact on small businesses and what will sustain their growth beyond 2021.

This report is also available in Spanish and Portuguese.

Access the Report

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