A Journal of University-Industry-Government Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Table 2 Funding programs to support SME innovations in China and USA
From: China’s innovation financing system: Triple Helix policy perspectives
China | USA | |
|---|---|---|
Major programs to support SME innovation | SME Innovation Fund and SME Development Fund | Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) program, Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program |
Year of establishment | The SME Innovation Fund was established in 1999, the SME Development Fund was established in 2011 | The Small Business Innovative Research (SBIR) was established in 1982, the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) was established in 1992 |
Goals of the programs | The SME Innovation Fund and SME Development Fund aim to provide financial supports to technically advanced start-up firms in order to accelerate SME technological innovations. | The SBIR/STTR program aims to stimulate entrepreneurship, technological innovations of small US businesses. The program also has the main purpose of increasing the commercial application of research results. |
Budget | The budget of SME Innovation Fund is RMB 500 million to RMB 1 billion (or approximately USD 80 to 160 million)/the budget of SME Development Fund is RMB 15 billion (or approximately USD 2.4 billion) | The SBIR/STTR program budget provides approximately USD 2.5 billion per year to support small business development. |
Business angel financing networks | China Business Angels Network (CBAN) was established in 2008. | The Angel Capital Association (ACA) was established in 2004. |
Angel investments | The amount of angel investments totaled USD 201.23 million in 2013. The angel investments were mainly concentrated in Beijing and Shanghai. | The amount of angel investments totaled USD 1.1 billion in 2013. The angel investments were mainly concentrated in California (Silicon Valley) and New England. |