From Ownership to Efficiency: Why Operational Leasing Outperforms the Bank Credit Crunch

In a macroeconomic context characterized by variable interest rates and increasingly selective credit access criteria, the role of the advisor is constantly evolving: from a mere liquidity provider to a true strategic partner.

In recent years, the credit landscape has been revolutionized by the entry of numerous fintechs and digital banks which, combined with abundant government guarantees, have created a distortion of creditworthiness. Many companies have accumulated debt not based on solid business plans but attracted by fast and easily accessible financing. This phenomenon has increased systemic risk: today, the market includes many over-indebted companies that survive only through continuous refinancing without generating real value, while the banking system struggles to manage the burden of non-performing loans.

All of this has inevitably led to a tightening of loan issuance by financial institutions and a vicious cycle of liquidity stagnation, resulting in a “flight to quality” by banks, which prefer low-risk lending, penalizing more dynamic but innovative companies.

In this scenario, operational leasing is not just an alternative but a strategic choice to preserve the financial health of SMEs, as it provides an exit from the traditional resource acquisition model:

• Liquidity protection. Leasing is a service that requires no upfront payment or final buyout (unlike leasing); it does not affect bank credit lines and is not reported to credit registries, thus preserving borrowing capacity for structural investments.
• Economic sustainability. It avoids the medium- to long-term mistakes of over-indebtedness; companies pay only for the use of the asset (pay-per-use), while mitigating the risk of obsolescence of machinery, equipment, and furnishings, fostering innovation.
• Tax advantages. Lease fees are fully deductible, allowing for much faster amortization compared to asset ownership.
• Planning. It enables alignment of costs with the revenues generated by the asset itself.
• Flexibility. This model can be applied to operational assets across any commercial or productive sector, from retail to healthcare, logistics to catering, industrial plants to furnishings, energy efficiency to digitalization.

Defining a narrow scope for operational leasing would be limiting and outdated, as it has evolved from a simple “alternative” financing tool for purchasing to a strategic and integrative solution, thanks to its flexibility, tax optimization, and management of technological obsolescence.

Accessing always-up-to-date assets is not only a best-practice business management model but also supports a circular economy business model, promoting more conscious and optimized resource use, while simultaneously reducing waste and costs associated with disposal.

Naturally, the cultural approach of SMEs has shifted from asset ownership to asset utilization. In this paradigm shift, the intrinsic value of the asset lies not in the asset itself but in its ability to generate value, and the capital freed from not being tied up in the asset can be invested in human resources or research and development.

From a financial perspective, it is worth emphasizing the positive impact operational leasing has on corporate balance sheet ratios, improving ROA (Return on Assets) and EBITDA, since lease fees are treated as operating costs rather than amortization plus financial charges. This significantly improves credit ratings, as lease payments are not recorded as financial debt in credit registries, allowing the company to maintain borrowing capacity for other strategic operations while continuing to innovate its production processes.

Another widely used financial solution within operational leasing for liquidity generation is Rent Back. This mechanism allows immediate liquidity by monetizing a balance sheet asset through its sale to the leasing company at its residual value, which simultaneously re-leases it back to the seller with a repurchase option at the end of the lease. The operational asset is therefore transferred to the leasing company but remains in use by the seller, who can continue using it and, importantly, deduct lease fees. Legally and financially, this constitutes a sale between the company and the leasing company and a lease agreement between the same parties, thus remaining outside traditional banking dynamics.

Consequently, there is no reporting to credit registries, nor are additional or personal guarantees required, apart from an all-risk insurance policy to protect the buyer from potential asset damage.

Business growth can no longer, and must no longer, be anchored to rigid past models but must embrace agility, cost optimization, and focus on the core business—especially for rapidly growing companies that require technological upgrades without tying up capital, while also benefiting from tax advantages and reduced operational risks.

“In a market that no longer rewards ownership but rewards better use of resources, operational leasing stops being a financial instrument and becomes a strategic positioning choice.”