This study examines the effects of a small grants subsidy on small- and medium-sized enterprises’ (SMEs) productivity. Using rich Japanese firm-level data, we analyze the effects of both applying for and receiving subsidies. We employ a sharp regression discontinuity design for the receipt effects and a difference-in-differences (DID) design for the application effects. The result shows that there are no statistically significant changes in likelihood after receiving the subsidy. By contrast, applicants experienced higher productivity and sales growth than non-applicants. These positive effects are most obvious in post-entry firms whose operating years are 6–10 years in the service sector. These results are robustly confirmed using a DID model with propensity score matching, controlling for both pre-intervention levels and trends in the outcome. Our findings imply that the subsidy application process with external support fosters entrepreneurship for firms that have survived the first 5 years after start-up, leading to their growth.

本研究考察了小额赠款补贴对中小企业 (SME) 生产力的影响。利用丰富的日本企业层面的数据，我们分析了申请和接受补贴的影响。我们对接收效果采用锐利回归不连续设计，对应用效果采用差异差 (DID) 设计。结果表明，接受补贴后的可能性在统计上没有显着变化。相比之下，申请人的生产力和销售额增长高于非申请人。这些积极影响在服务业运营年限为 6 至 10 年的进入后公司中最为明显。使用具有倾向得分匹配的 DID 模型有力地证实了这些结果，同时控制了干预前水平和结果趋势。