SME crowdfunding guarantee fund: how it works and what changes for businesses and investors

The SME Guarantee Fund is a state instrument designed to facilitate businesses' access to credit. Until now it has been associated almost exclusively with the banking system. Today, however, its perimeter is expanding: the public guarantee also enters the world of crowdfunding.

This is a significant innovation because it connects two areas that, until recently, were separate: on the one hand, the traditional finance assisted by the state, on the other hand, alternative finance based on digital platforms and widespread investors.

But what, specifically, changes for companies looking to raise capital and for investors evaluating crowdinvesting opportunities? The state guarantee changes the risk profile, the dynamics of access to capital, and, to some extent, even the perception of crowdfunding itself: Let's find out all the details of the news in this article.

The SME Guarantee Fund: what it is and what it is for

For those not familiar with it, let's start with a brief summary of the instrument we are talking about. The SME Guarantee Fund is a public instrument managed by the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy, designed to facilitate access to credit for small and medium-sized enterprises.

How it works is simple: the government guarantees a portion of the risk assumed by a lender (typically a bank or financial intermediary) to a company applying for financing.

The Fund, therefore, plays the role of loan guarantor for a portion of the loan: if the enterprise does not repay the loan received, the Fund covers the guaranteed portion, reducing the loss to the lender.

This mechanism has two main effects:

• makes it easier to grant credit even to companies with medium risk profiles;
  
• Improves the economic conditions of financing.

To whom it applies and what operations it covers

The fund is intended for the small and medium-sized enterprises according to the European Commission definition, and covers various types of financial transactions, including investment financing, liquidity operations, refinancings and debt consolidations.

Traditionally, these operations have been handled through banking channels or authorized financial intermediaries. The role of the Fund has always been to reduce credit risk, thus incentivizing the provision of financing.

Why it was extended to crowdfunding

L'Extension of state guarantee to crowdfunding is part of a broader process of evolution in corporate finance.

Over time, crowdfunding took on an increasingly structured configuration and role as an alternative finance tool for businesses, especially thanks to recent European regulation. But it remained “alternative” finance, a different world from traditional finance, even in terms of the consideration with which it was viewed by institutional eyes.

Today, however, the extension of the Guarantee Fund responds to a specific logic: Integrating crowdfunding into the official financial system, recognizing it as a suitable channel for accessing credit and making it more accessible through a risk mitigation mechanism.

The regulatory measure: state guarantee enters crowdfunding

The entry of the SME Guarantee Fund into crowdfunding is the result of a regulatory update that expands the scope of transactions eligible for the public guarantee.

The ministerial decree of January 7, 2026 stipulates that financing and venture capital investments made through online portals (“crowdfunding service providers”) can also be backed by the state guarantee, subject to certain conditions.

In contrast to the traditional configuration of the Fund, the decree Does not limit the intervention to lending only, i.e., lending crowdfunding only.

They are in fact involved, in different ways, equity, lending and debt crowdfunding. However, while for lending crowdfunding and Minibonds the guarantee operates directly on the credit risk, for equity crowdfunding the mechanism is more articulated and does not coincide with a direct coverage of the investment.

The Fund guarantee is granted:

• Up to 80% of the loan transaction amount in lending crowdfunding
• up to 80% of the amount of the Minibond (or other bond) subscription transaction
• up to 50% of the transaction amount of subscription of “securities” or “other “instruments allowed for crowdfunding purposes” other than the first two (e.g., and especially, equity crowdfunding venture capital).

The guarantee does not apply to derivative instruments and, in the case of convertible bonds, ceases upon conversion to equity.

How the state guarantee in crowdfunding works in practice

1. SME prepares a capital raising on an authorized platform

2. The operation is configured to be eligible for the guarantee

3. The platform submits the guarantee application to the Fund

4. The Guarantee Fund evaluates and grants coverage

5. The campaign is proposed to investors with the active guarantee (if approved)

The role of platforms: access to the Fund and operational management

A central element of the new mechanism is the role of crowdfunding platforms, which no longer simply provide the technological infrastructure, but become Active parties in accessing the public guarantee.

In fact, it is the platforms that have to apply for Fund coverage for the benefit of investors and businesses. In order to do so, they must be:

• authorized under Regulation (EU) 2020/1503 (ECSPR);
  
• accredited to the Guarantee Fund.

Accreditation requires the demonstration of organizational, operational and control requirements, including the ability to select and evaluate operations, the existence of adequate risk management procedures and investment tracking and reporting systems.

Once accredited, the platform must:

1. Structure the operation in a way that complies with the requirements of the Fund
   (enterprise type, financial instrument, investment purpose);
   
2. submit the guarantee application On behalf of the individual operation;
   
3. manage the flow of information toward the Fund, both at the admission stage and during the life of the investment;
   
4. activate the enforcement procedure, if the conditions are met. 

The activation of the warranty

The operation of the guarantee emerges in a concrete way in case the company is unable to fulfill its obligations or loses value after the crowdfunding campaign.

In lending and debt crowdfunding:

• if the enterprise fails to repay the loan or debt security, the enforcement procedure is triggered;
  
• the Fund covers the guaranteed share (so up to 80%);
  
• the investor incurs a loss only on the unhedged portion.

Unlike lending, where there is a failure to repay principal, in equity crowdfunding the loss emerges only when the investment is closed or loses value.

The coverage of the guarantee, therefore, is more indirect and can be applied with different operational mechanisms, which are not directly specified by the decree: the regulatory text only states that this guarantee “is granted pursuant to and within the limits of existing state aid regulations in the form of ‘risk financing’ as specified in the operational provisions.”.

These operational arrangements list a complex set of requirements that SMEs must meet, not only in their nature but also in the allocation of funds raised in crowdfunding, and clarifies the dynamics of the guarantee.

The guarantee kicks in when there is a loss at the company's exit or bankruptcy.

• Case 1: Exit with sale of shares at a lower price than the purchase price. 

The guarantee covers up to 50% of the difference between the purchase price of the units or shares and the transfer price of the units or shares.

• Case 2: Bankruptcy and liquidation of the enterprise.

There is no market price of the shares, so the value of the holdings is determined through sworn report of an independent expert, which estimates the realizable value of the shares.

The Guarantee Fund covers up to 50% of the difference between invested capital and estimated realizable value.

Where the investment involves SPVs or UCIs, the manner in which the guarantee is executed may change: for each individual transaction, this should be clarified with the Guarantee Fund at the time of application for coverage and communicated transparently to investors.

Implications for businesses

The extension of the Guarantee Fund to crowdfunding has a direct impact on the ability of companies to raise capital, especially on the debt side.

In lending crowdfunding, the presence of the guarantee reduces the risk for investors and thus makes the transaction more attractive as well as accessible to less experienced investors.

This can facilitate the success of the collection.

But not only that: reducing perceived risk can promote more competitive interest rates and greater availability of capital on a level playing field.

For equity crowdfunding, the effect is limited but still relevant.

L'additional charge for the enterprise is to handle the bureaucratic procedures to obtain coverage and to communicate the benefit effectively and understandably to investors.

Recall, however, that the practical action of applying for coverage is the responsibility of the crowdfunding platform. It is up to the company to provide information and documents proving its eligibility for the state guarantee.

Implications for investors

The Fund guarantee is granted explicitly “in favor of investors” and “for the ultimate benefit of the beneficiaries” i.e., enterprises. From the investors' perspective, the presence of the guarantee changes the way the transaction is evaluated. Guarantee reduces perceived risk, although it does not eliminate it.

This is especially true for lending crowdfunding, where you may no longer lose everything but only a portion of your invested capital.

In the face of reduced risk, secured transactions can offer lower returns than unsecured transactions: they become suitable for investors with a more conservative profile.

In equity crowdfunding, the risk remains higher than in lending, but even here it can affect only a portion of the invested capital.

In any case, crowdfunding becomes an even more suitable tool for retail investors and accessible to those with little experience: Guarantee Fund can increase investor confidence and reduce mistrust of online investment.