« Consolidating and sustaining the structures of the social and solidarity economy to improve the efficiency of professional microcredit in France », 5th CIRIEC International Research Conference on Social Economy, Lisbonne, 15-18 juillet

In France, four main players share the professional microcredit market. Among these structures, three, as non-profit associations, belong to the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). All offer financing services to isolated individuals and go with them in their self-employment goal. Only one also directly finances the SSE sector, with the same objective of job creation. Our contribution aims to demonstrate the value of consolidating and sustaining the structures of the SSE, lenders as well as recipients of loans, to improve the effectiveness of professional microcredit in France. In a first part, we assess the effects on employment of the leading microloans distributors in France and we point out their business models' limitations. This approach provides a comparative analysis of the performances of these four major players. We conclude that, although supported by volunteers and legal capacity to mobilize private funds, professional microcredit activity cannot be maintained without public intervention. In a second part, we study the prospects of public initiatives, both regulatory and budgetary, recently taken in favour of the SSE and question their potential effects on employment in France. We demonstrate that the microloans granted to SSE structures which provide training and integration by employment can be more efficient than those granted individually. The potential for collective use of microloans remains largely unexplored to improve access to employment and recurring earnings; the new Law on the Social and Solidarity Economy provides a framework for this exploration. To increase the efficiency of professional microcredit in France, in terms of jobs creation and income, our results argue both for a strengthening of the orientation of the fund towards the SSE insertion structures and for a better monitoring of the impact of funding granted.