According to Intrum’s 2026 European Payments Report, 50% of Spain’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) believe international economic uncertainty has not yet peaked, a figure 15 percentage points higher than that recorded among large corporations. This takes place in a context where growth remains a priority for the Spanish business landscape, with 63% of companies placing it among their top business objectives.
SMEs present a distinct perception of the economic environment. Although only 26% show concern about tariffs, compared with 37% of large companies, their worry about deflation reaches 35%, seven points above the figure for large firms. This combination suggests that, even though they are less exposed to certain international factors, small and medium-sized enterprises do perceive meaningful risks to their activities.
One of the main challenges for this segment, which in Spain comprises nearly three million businesses, is its thinner margin for absorbing delays or defaults by customers. 42% of SMEs acknowledge this difficulty, seven points more than large corporations. Furthermore, 17% report having recorded higher credit losses in 2025 compared with the previous period, while among large companies this figure stands at 13%.
SMEs’ resilience to late payments is higher
SME customers show somewhat more difficulty paying their invoices. Specifically, this problem affects 6 out of 10 companies (62%), three points above the figure recorded among large corporations. This situation can create a domino effect, as collection challenges end up spilling over to suppliers. In fact, 52% of Spanish companies acknowledge having missed payment deadlines with their suppliers due to late payments from their own customers, an impact that occurs similarly across both segments, though it is slightly higher among large companies, where it reaches 59%.
Nevertheless, SMEs seem to contain some effects of delinquency somewhat better. 59% express concern about payment delays, versus 63% of large corporations. This difference points to greater confidence among small and medium-sized businesses in their resilience and continuity, despite operating with fewer resources and less leeway.
Regarding the consequences of delays in payments, the deterioration of the relationship with customers affects 16% of SMEs. However, the impact on hiring is more pronounced: nearly 4 in 10 (39%) report difficulties in hiring new staff, five points more than for large companies.
Businesses are calling for tougher legislation
The Intrum European Payments Report also shows broad business consensus on the need to strengthen the regulatory framework against delinquencies. 57% of Spanish companies call on governments to push for stricter regulations to support companies affected by payment delays, with a very similar level of agreement among SMEs and large corporations.
In this context, a potential reform of Directive 2011/7/EU, relating to the fight against late payments in commercial transactions, proposes limiting the payment term to 30 days for SMEs, while maintaining negotiable terms for large companies.
However, international regulatory pressure does not affect all segments equally. Large companies perceive a greater pressure when pursuing collections in other European Union countries: 62% say they experience this, compared with 25% of SMEs.
Opportunity for improvement in digitalization and AI use
The adoption of new technologies in payment management is progressing more slowly among SMEs. 39% have not used artificial intelligence in this area, versus only 10% of large companies, though more than 60% believe it can significantly improve delinquency management.
The difference is also reflected in perceived usefulness. 53% of large companies value the ability of bots and assistants to act decisively yet fairly, compared with 19% of SMEs. Additionally, 54% of large companies believe customers prefer to interact via AI, compared with 18% of small and medium-sized enterprises.
While SMEs generate more than half of the jobs in companies in Spain, one of the main barriers for this segment is a lack of internal talent, and in this regard, 58% acknowledge difficulties in extracting real value from AI. Added to this are upfront investment, associated costs, and the complexity of national systems, factors that delay the immediate benefits of digitization.
Although large companies prioritize AI as a path to speed up collections, with a 14-point gap over SMEs, these smaller firms lean more toward other tools, such as data analytics to predict defaults and the option to offer different payment choices to their customers, a practice in which they exceed large companies by seven points. This trend could shift as the segment’s digitalization advances: 32% of SMEs still do not use these AI tools but plan to invest in them, compared with 9% of large companies.
