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Introduction
Entrepreneurship and finance have always been deeply intertwined: the fate of new ventures depends on access to capital, while financial systems rely on entrepreneurial dynamism for growth and innovation (Bellavitis et al., 2017; Block et al., 2018). In recent decades, however, this relationship has been profoundly reshaped by digital transformation, the rapid rise of artificial intelligence (AI), and mounting sustainability pressures that are redefining how value is created, evaluated, and financed (Gomber et al., 2017; Bertoni et al., 2022; Battisti et al., 2024).
These developments have generated new financing channels and new actors within entrepreneurial ecosystems, while simultaneously raising fundamental questions about who gains access to capital, under what conditions, and through which mechanisms (Bertello et al., 2022). This evolving environment is particularly challenging for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and new ventures, which typically lack the collateral, legitimacy, and institutional visibility enjoyed by larger firms (Cowling et al., 2021).
The financial landscape in which entrepreneurs operate today is far more complex than the contexts in which traditional financial theories were originally developed. Emerging financing channels - ranging from crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending to tokenized assets and AI-driven credit platforms - have transformed how capital is allocated (Battisti et al., 2024; Block et al., 2018; Butticè & Vismara, 2022). Yet financial decisions are not purely technical or autonomous; they are shaped by behavioral biases, social networks, institutional environments, accounting practices, and sustainability logics (Colombo et al., 2023). While these dimensions have been examined separately across disciplines, systematic dialogue focused on entrepreneurship and small business finance remains limited (Bertoni et al., 2022; Inceoglu et al., 2024).
The rise of artificial intelligence makes this interdisciplinary engagement particularly urgent. AI does not merely represent a new analytical tool; it acts as a structural force reshaping relationships among entrepreneurs, investors, platforms, and institutions (Tran and Murphy, 2023; Kleinert & Vismara, 2026). It transforms credit evaluation, risk modeling, and investment screening, directly affecting SMEs’ access to finance (Li et al., 2024).
Simultaneously, AI reshapes how ventures are created, scaled, and governed, with implications for financial structures, resource mobilization, and legitimacy (Obschonka et al., 2025). In doing so, it cuts across behavioral, social, accounting, and sustainability dimensions of entrepreneurial finance, underscoring why an interdisciplinary approach is not only desirable but essential.
This Special Issue seeks to advance a multidisciplinary research agenda on the evolving relationship between entrepreneurship and finance. We invite contributions that deepen theoretical and empirical understanding of how digitalization, AI, and sustainability pressures are reshaping entrepreneurial finance. The goal is to provide insights relevant not only to scholars in management and finance but also to entrepreneurs, SME managers, investors, policymakers, and financial intermediaries navigating increasingly complex ecosystems.
We welcome conceptual articles, systematic literature reviews, bibliometric analyses, and empirical contributions employing quantitative, qualitative, experimental, or mixed methods. Longitudinal studies, cross-national comparisons, and multi-level designs are particularly encouraged. All submissions should meaningfully engage both the entrepreneurial and financial dimensions of the phenomenon and discuss implications for theory, practice, and policy.
List of Topic Areas
The Guest Editors invite conceptual, methodological, and empirical contributions that address themes such as - but not limited to - the following:
- Environmental and Social Disclosure in SMEs: Implications for Access to Capital, Investor Relations, and Financial Performance.
- Access to Capital and Financing Decisions in SMEs: Behavioral, Cognitive, and Psychological Determinants.
- Entrepreneurial Finance and Social Inclusion: Gender, Ethnicity, and Geography as Structural Barriers to Capital Access.
- Financial Reporting, Intangible Assets, and Creditworthiness in Innovative Small Businesses.
Regulatory Frameworks and Institutional Conditions for Entrepreneurial Finance Across National Contexts. - Alternative Financing Mechanisms: Crowdfunding, Peer-to-Peer Lending, and Tokenized Assets: Financial Performance and Social Implications.
- AI-Driven Financial Decision-Making: Credit Scoring, Risk Modeling, and Investment Screening for Small Businesses.
- The Financial Implications of AI-Powered Venture Creation: Resource Mobilization, Capital Structure, and Legitimacy in Platform-Based Startups.
Submission Information
Submissions of full manuscripts are made using ScholarOne Manuscripts. Registration and access are available here:
Author guidelines must be strictly followed. Please see:
Authors should select (from the drop-down menu) the special issue title at the appropriate step in the submission process, i.e. in response to “Please select the issue you are submitting to”.
Submitted articles must not have been previously published, nor should they be under consideration for publication anywhere else, while under review for this journal.
Key Dates
Opening date for manuscript submissions: 4 January 2027
Closing date for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2027
Guest Editors
Enrico Battisti, University of Turin, Turin, Italy, enrico.battisti@unito.it (lead guest editor)
Francesco Schiavone, University Parthenope, Naples, Italy, francesco.schiavone@uniparthenope.it
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