To improve the credit supply available to small businesses, the State of Israel has many programs in place. The main one is the Lending Fund for Small and Medium Business of the State Guarantee – a fund that, through a State Guarantee that is geared to banks and institutional investors, manages to access more smaller businesses with bank credit, and under improved conditions. While this program has been able to significantly expand the supply of credit over the years and improve the reputation of small businesses in the eyes of banks, until recently, credit was provided only with bank credit, and even today, when institutional bodies began operating under the fund, alternative credit remained out of bounds.