“Glocal” ties: banking development and SEs’ export entry

In this paper we explore the impact of the banking sector development on the first time export entry of small enterprises (SEs) in the Turkish manufacturing sector. By exploiting variation in the number of branches per capita across NUTS3 regions and variation in financial dependence across sectors, we support a positive and significant role of finance in fostering the access to foreign markets of SEs. This evidence is robust to the use of alternative measures, the control for omitted variables and the correction for endogeneity. We show that the banking sector reduces the incidence of sunk entry costs by providing both credit and destination-specific information. Finally, we provide original evidence on the role of the territorial diffusion of foreign banks’ branches on SEs’ exports. While no direct effect is detected, we disclose a minor and indirect effect of foreign branches working through their influence on the banking sector development at the local level.