Experts counsel SMEs on due diligence in attracting investors

Experts counsel SMEs on due diligence in attracting investors

Business experts have advised operators of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Oshodi, Isolo and Ejigbo to carry out proper due diligence before accepting capital from potential investors in a bid to grow their business.

They gave the counsel at a Small Business Summit organised by SME 100 Africa during the recently.

Executive Secretary, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), Akin Oyebode, said access to capital was necessary but not sufficient condition for success.

Oyebode said investors were always seeking to put their money in businesses that would guarantee returns, stressing that it was also important for business owners themselves to do due diligence on investors before allowing them in.

He stated, “On the equity side, when investors are doing due diligence on you as a business owner, also do due diligence on them.

Oyebode said some of the exhibitors at the event narrated their struggle to register their businesses with regulatory agencies such as National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) or the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).

“These are issues around business environment, which we are working to resolve with the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC),” he said.

In her remark, Bukola Smith, Executive Director at First City Monument Bank (FCMB), said one way small businesses could overcome their challenges was by building networks.

Smith said building transformational businesses required change of mind-set, urging entrepreneurs to update their leadership styles while building partnerships within the network.