Institutional Transformations of the SME Sector and the Need to Change the Priorities of Its State Support

Abstract

   The article compares the declared goals and the actual dynamics of the development of the sector of small and medium-sized enterprises in Russia. This sector receives quite significant government support but does not fully use it for its own purposes and development, transferring part of the income to larger companies. Large companies dominating SMEs receive institutional rents in this way, and the state, in fact, finances their development.   The relevance of the topic is determined by the need for structural and institutional restructuring of the Russian economy in the context of sanctions.   State policy should focus more clearly on identifying and overcoming barriers to the development of small, medium, and large businesses. Such barriers include the transition from a medium-sized business to a large one when the annual revenue reaches the threshold of 2 billion rubles.