We examine whether there are distinctive features in small and medium enterprises according to their
size and legal form. Financing decisions in particular are studied, using pecking order, trade-off and life
cycle theories as our conceptual framework. Using a sample of companies from Bahía Blanca (Argentina),
we analyze the variables through nonparametric tests and tests of independence. The results show that
larger companies are more leveraged, while businesses that adopt limited liability legal forms differ
in their greater use of loans with collateral. These results point to the need to design support policies
specially targeted to the different business segments.
