The Impact of E-Business on Entrepreneurship Development in the Context of COVID-19

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted every aspect of life on a global scale. E-business has become a key factor influencing the profitability of businesses in various fields, regardless of their size. The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of e-business in entrepreneurship development in various fields during the COVID-19 pandemic. For this purpose, a panel analysis of data from 212 micro, small, medium-sized and large companies, and nine business sectors (trade, chemical, light, pharmaceutical, food, agricultural, HoReCo (hotel and restaurant industry), electronics and IT, transport) was used with data comparison for 2019 and 2020 in Ukraine, Bulgaria, Poland, Moldova and Georgia. The e-business platform was found to be the key indicator of maintaining performance during a pandemic. The analyzed questionnaire data show that 58% of respondents saw an increase in online income in 2020 compared to 2019 that in such sectors as trade, IT and pharmacy. There were 59% of respondents who saw the need to expand communication networks with existing and potential customers, because it was positively correlated with the efficiency of e-business. Besides, the results show that equity financing and proper liquidity management consolidate the economic performance of businesses in terms of return on equity and return on assets. Our findings are useful to managers and investors, and can help them make the best decisions about their management or investment activities. Moreover, the study demonstrates how companies were responding to the pandemic in order to identify sectors that are more vulnerable to the effects of the crisis and the key financial management decisions that companies need to make during the crisis.