Pages: 2

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book proposes an introductory analysis of the forms of aggregation among enterprises, paying particular attention to network aggregations. It examines peculiarities of the bank-business relationship in depth, from the point of view of network economy. The book tackles with the difficult issue of determining the rating of the network and of the network companies. It presents the results of the empirical survey conducted both by means of a structured questionnaire to a sample of business networks based in the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, and through a survey conducted through the technique of case studies both on the demand side and on the supply side. The book proposes elements for conclusions, in an evolutionary perspective.

Pages: 22

In the context of non-equity aggregations, the Italian economic fabric has long been fertile ground for the application and dissemination of two types of aggregation that mainly involve medium or small-sized companies: Temporary Associations of Enterprises and districts. The effectiveness of aggregation as a tool for overcoming the constituent limitations of SMEs is amply demonstrated, not only on a conceptual but also on an empirical basis. Aggregation processes represent an option that small and medium-sized enterprises can activate in order to overcome the constituent limitations that characterize them and to undertake business development paths both in quantitative and qualitative terms. The bodies, tools and procedures for governing the aggregation on the basis of the signing of network contract are a second aspect worthy of attention. The regime of external consortia is more similar to the network contract since for obligations assumed by the consortium through the persons who represent it, third parties can only stake claims against the consortium fund.

Pages: 26

This chapter retraces the main aspects of the bank-firm relationship and outlines some “relevant” guidelines as regards the overall dynamics in relations between firms and banking institutions. It identifies some critical issues connected to business aggregations from the point of view of the management of information flows. The chapter projects the phenomenon of business networks into the broader context of governance profiles and the related economic implications. It reconsiders issues of remarkable interest from the perspective of the bank-firm relationship and discusses them in the context of networks. The bank-firm relationship in its various forms is a subject of considerable interest in specialist literature in the finance sector. The propensity of enterprises towards aggregation according to various forms of cooperation requires reinterpreting the information problem in the context of complex organizations. A widely debated issue in the literature revolves around the impact of information on the terms of the loan and on the value of relationship with the funding bank.

Pages: 25

The goal of this chapter is to identify modes to which the banks can resort to in order to attribute a rating to business networks established through a network contract, as well as to the individual participants in this aggregation, considered on a stand-alone basis. The issue of ratings, i.e. of the prospective solvency of a given debtor to be summarized by alpha-numerical values expressed on ordinal ranges, has been widely researched by the scientific-academic literature. It is evident that, in practice, within a formalized, highly integrated industrial group, in which the holding company exercises activities of governance and direction the rating assignment process appearing as the more suitable is the one centered on the parent company. The development of the phenomenon of business networks gives rise to the problem of defining a new paradigm in which to frame the relations that are established between them and the banking system.

Pages: 40

From the point of view of the methods used, the survey is conducted, first of all, by administering a structured questionnaire to an appropriate sample of business networks located within the region. This chapter is meant for mapping the relevant information on the network contract, such as duration, number of parties and control. It intends to map some profiles of considerable importance in relation to the strategic and entrepreneurial orientation of businesses that opt to establish a network. The findings on the governance of networks and on the relationships within the network are all in all unambiguous and show network-shaped organizations that tend to be at “low” levels along the organizational learning curve. The chapter is intended for studying the approach of credit institutions to the problem of assessing creditworthiness in the context of business networks. It preliminarily examines the operational aspects related to the analysis of the creditworthiness by a small local cooperative bank.

Pages: 10

The research work offered an overview of the phenomenon of business networks in their various legal, operational and organizational forms. The reflections were based on conceptual approaches that sometimes contrast with the traditional view of the theory of financial gaps. The assessment of creditworthiness undertakes significant implications in the case of business networks. The creditworthiness assessment could involve the need to reconsider even the lending technologies commonly used by the bank. In a network-related context, an interesting question arises concerning the interrelationships among different lending technologies. The element of trust appears to be central in the context of business relations, which are subject to uncertainty about the outcome of the exchange and often exposed to adverse impacts attributable to conflicting interests between the parties. Indeed, the role of trust appears to be relevant in relational contexts and, especially, in fostering cooperative behavior patterns within networks featuring multiple stakeholders.