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Worldwide, Small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) exhibit inimitable financial needs. While SMEs remain fundamental to economic growth, their mortality rate in Kenya approaches 90% by the second year, mainly owing to lack of credit. However, scholarly endeavors exploring the impact of alternative finance (AF) on managerial competency - efficiency nexus for manufacturing SMEs have received little attention in Kenya. To resolve this conundrum, a thorough study to investigate how AF impacts managerial competency - efficiency nexus is necessary. The study used a cross-sectional research design, employing both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The target population was 171 SMEs registered with Kenya Association of Manufacturers. The accessible population was 136 SMEs owners/managers. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect primary and secondary data. Data envelopment analysis was used to measure efficiency, multiple regression modeling used to analyze the direct relationships while hierarchical moderated multiple regression analysis employed to test moderation. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling was used to test robustness of our results. The findings of this study demonstrate that managerial competency positively influences efficiency (? = 0.150, t-value =10.246, P<0.05), and that alternative finance does moderate managerial competency relationships with efficiency (R-Square change of 21.7%). We suggest trainings for manufacturing SME owners/managers in Kenya on the pivotal role of alternative finance to facilitate SMEs achieve higher efficiencies and accelerate economic growth.

This study explores the factors influencing youth entrepreneurs in Tanzania to adopt crowdlending as an alternative source of finance and the challenges they encounter in the process. Using a qualitative case study approach, interviews were conducted with 15 young entrepreneurs who successfully accessed loans through a crowdlending platform. Thematic analysis was conducted through transcription, coding, and theme development processes. The findings indicate that financial necessity and limited access to traditional banking were the primary motivators for adopting crowdlending. However, the study also found that entrepreneurs often have a limited understanding of the crowdfunding process, as many access the platform through intermediaries. Additionally, the study identifies high interest rates and transaction costs imposed by financial intermediaries as major barriers to the perceived benefits of crowdlending. The findings underscore the importance of tailored financial literacy initiatives, user-centred platform design, and policy frameworks to unlock crowdlending’s potential for inclusive youth entrepreneurship in Tanzania. 

This study investigates the role of large language models (LLMs) in retail investors (RIs) decision-making processes from the perspective of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). It explores whether LLMs can replace or change the role of financial experts and whether introducing LLMs may lead to more infromed RIs’ decisions. Qualitative interviews were conducted with experienced RIs (n = 8). Secondary data were gathered from YouTube recordings (n = 44). Thematic analysis and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) methodology was used for data extraction and analysis of the scripts. The findings indicate that while LLMs have the potential to enhance accessibility to expert opinions and provide more informed investment decisions, they are unlikely to replace human experts. RIs show a preference for combining LLM insights with human expertise, recognising the limitations of LLMs in managing complex and nuanced investment information. The study highlights the usefulness of the TPB as a framework for the exploration of the topic. It also introduces a novel research method - advanced data extraction techniques on a vast unstructured dataset.?Results contribute to the understanding of LLMs potential in supporting RIs and confirms the usefulness on the AESTIMA tool for data extraction and analysis. 

<p><em>Globally, small and medium-size enterprises(SMEs) hold great economic growth potential, however their mortality rate is high, due to lack of credit. The SMEs mortality rate in Kenya is 90% by the second year. Scholarly endeavors to explore the influence of alternative finance (AF) on operational characteristics - efficiency nexus have received little attention, more so for SMEs who have unique financial needs. Although AF appears to be the preferred mode of financing and maintaining start-ups, its impact on the survival, growth and success of manufacturing SMEs is not well documented in Kenya.  This study focused on establishing the influence of alternative financing on the relationship between firm-size and efficiency of SMEs in Kenya. The study used a cross-sectional research design. The target population was SMEs registered with Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM). The accessible population was 136 SMEs owner/managers. The study used a self-administered semi structured questionnaire to collect primary and secondary data. Data envelopment analysis was used to measure efficiency of SMEs, multiple regression modeling to analyze relationships and hierarchical moderated multiple regression analysis was used to assess the influence of the moderator. The findings revealed that firm-size positively (β = 0.214, t-value =4.983, P<0.05.) influences efficiency and that alternative finance does moderate (R-Square change 11.1 %) firm size relationships with efficiency. The study recommends that owner/managers of manufacturing SMEs in Kenya should give attention to opportunities for sustainable increase in firm size to improve their efficiency.</em></p>

After digital technology started spreading around economies, the hypothesis emerged that smaller but very digitally inclined firms would disrupt existing profitability levels by challenging incumbents’ market power. In this context, the banking sector would be no exception. By testing this hypothesis through a fixed effects model considering quarterly data from 2011 to 2022 for Brazilian banks, we found that from 2016 on there was a change in the behavior of intermediation revenues associated with increased competition in the sector, especially due to the performance of fintechs and digital banks. On the other hand, we observed a reversal of the slope of fee revenues, which became positive, indicating an attempt to compensate for the drop in intermediation revenues, notably an unwanted side effect. The study recommends that policymakers should watch for possible substitution effects while designing banking regulations.

After digital technology started spreading around economies, the hypothesis emerged that smaller but very digitally inclined firms would disrupt existing profitability levels by challenging incumbents’ market power. In this context, the banking sector would be no exception. By testing this hypothesis through a fixed effects model considering quarterly data from 2011 to 2022 for Brazilian banks, we found that from 2016 on there was a change in the behavior of intermediation revenues associated with increased competition in the sector, especially due to the performance of fintechs and digital banks. On the other hand, we observed a reversal of the slope of fee revenues, which became positive, indicating an attempt to compensate for the drop in intermediation revenues, notably an unwanted side effect. The study recommends that policymakers should watch for possible substitution effects while designing banking regulations.

This study explores the factors influencing youth entrepreneurs in Tanzania to adopt crowdlending as an alternative source of finance and the challenges they encounter in the process. Using a qualitative case study approach, interviews were conducted with 15 young entrepreneurs who successfully accessed loans through a crowdlending platform. Thematic analysis was conducted through transcription, coding, and theme development processes. The findings indicate that financial necessity and limited access to traditional banking were the primary motivators for adopting crowdlending. However, the study also found that entrepreneurs often have a limited understanding of the crowdfunding process, as many access the platform through intermediaries. Additionally, the study identifies high interest rates and transaction costs imposed by financial intermediaries as major barriers to the perceived benefits of crowdlending. The findings underscore the importance of tailored financial literacy initiatives, user-centred platform design, and policy frameworks to unlock crowdlending’s potential for inclusive youth entrepreneurship in Tanzania. 

This study investigates the role of large language models (LLMs) in retail investors (RIs) decision-making processes from the perspective of the Theory of Planned Behaviour (TPB). It explores whether LLMs can replace or change the role of financial experts and whether introducing LLMs may lead to more infromed RIs’ decisions. Qualitative interviews were conducted with experienced RIs (n = 8). Secondary data were gathered from YouTube recordings (n = 44). Thematic analysis and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) methodology was used for data extraction and analysis of the scripts. The findings indicate that while LLMs have the potential to enhance accessibility to expert opinions and provide more informed investment decisions, they are unlikely to replace human experts. RIs show a preference for combining LLM insights with human expertise, recognising the limitations of LLMs in managing complex and nuanced investment information. The study highlights the usefulness of the TPB as a framework for the exploration of the topic. It also introduces a novel research method - advanced data extraction techniques on a vast unstructured dataset.?Results contribute to the understanding of LLMs potential in supporting RIs and confirms the usefulness on the AESTIMA tool for data extraction and analysis. 

<p><em>Globally, small and medium-size enterprises(SMEs) hold great economic growth potential, however their mortality rate is high, due to lack of credit. The SMEs mortality rate in Kenya is 90% by the second year. Scholarly endeavors to explore the influence of alternative finance (AF) on operational characteristics - efficiency nexus have received little attention, more so for SMEs who have unique financial needs. Although AF appears to be the preferred mode of financing and maintaining start-ups, its impact on the survival, growth and success of manufacturing SMEs is not well documented in Kenya.  This study focused on establishing the influence of alternative financing on the relationship between firm-size and efficiency of SMEs in Kenya. The study used a cross-sectional research design. The target population was SMEs registered with Kenya Association of Manufacturers (KAM). The accessible population was 136 SMEs owner/managers. The study used a self-administered semi structured questionnaire to collect primary and secondary data. Data envelopment analysis was used to measure efficiency of SMEs, multiple regression modeling to analyze relationships and hierarchical moderated multiple regression analysis was used to assess the influence of the moderator. The findings revealed that firm-size positively (β = 0.214, t-value =4.983, P<0.05.) influences efficiency and that alternative finance does moderate (R-Square change 11.1 %) firm size relationships with efficiency. The study recommends that owner/managers of manufacturing SMEs in Kenya should give attention to opportunities for sustainable increase in firm size to improve their efficiency.</em></p>

Worldwide, Small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs) exhibit inimitable financial needs. While SMEs remain fundamental to economic growth, their mortality rate in Kenya approaches 90% by the second year, mainly owing to lack of credit. However, scholarly endeavors exploring the impact of alternative finance (AF) on managerial competency - efficiency nexus for manufacturing SMEs have received little attention in Kenya. To resolve this conundrum, a thorough study to investigate how AF impacts managerial competency - efficiency nexus is necessary. The study used a cross-sectional research design, employing both qualitative and quantitative research approaches. The target population was 171 SMEs registered with Kenya Association of Manufacturers. The accessible population was 136 SMEs owners/managers. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to collect primary and secondary data. Data envelopment analysis was used to measure efficiency, multiple regression modeling used to analyze the direct relationships while hierarchical moderated multiple regression analysis employed to test moderation. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling was used to test robustness of our results. The findings of this study demonstrate that managerial competency positively influences efficiency (? = 0.150, t-value =10.246, P<0.05), and that alternative finance does moderate managerial competency relationships with efficiency (R-Square change of 21.7%). We suggest trainings for manufacturing SME owners/managers in Kenya on the pivotal role of alternative finance to facilitate SMEs achieve higher efficiencies and accelerate economic growth.