Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI), set up on April 2, 1990 under an Act of Indian Parliament, is the Principal Financial Institution for the Promotion, Financing and Development of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector and for Co-ordination of the functions of the institutions engaged in similar activities. Financial support is provided by way of refinance to eligible Primary Lending Institutions (PLIs) such as banks, State Financial Corporations (SFCs), State Industrial Development Corporations (SIDCs), State Small Industries Development Corporations (SSIDCs) etc. for onward lending to MSMEs, financial assistance in the form of loans, grants, equity and quasi-equity to Non Government Organisations / Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) for on-lending to micro enterprises and economically weaker sections of society, enabling them to take up income generating activities on a sustainable basis and direct assistance to MSMEs which is channelised through the Bank's network of 103 branch offices.

While finance is the basic need of the MSMEs, they also require different non-credit facilities to gain the extra mile in their endeavour to attain international competitiveness. Such requirements are equity capital, credit rating, technology transfer and upgradation, etc. SIDBI has been constantly working on building various institutional mechanisms to cater to the emerging needs of the MSME sector and has set-up various subsidiaries / associates viz.

• SIDBI Venture Capital Ltd. (SVCL), a subsidiary of SIDBI set up in July,1999, is an asset management company, presently managing two venture capital funds;
• Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) in July 2000 by Government of India and SIDBI, to provide credit guarantee support to collateral free / third-party guarantee free loans extended by banks and lending institutions for micro and small enterprises (MSEs);
• SME Rating Agency of India Ltd. (SMERA) in September 2005, as an MSME dedicated third-party rating agency to provide comprehensive, transparent and reliable ratings and risk profiling
• India SME Technology Services Limited (ISTSL), set up in November 2005, provides a platform for MSMEs to tap opportunities at the global level for acquisition of modern technologies
• India SME Asset Reconstruction Company ltd (ISARC) is the country's first MSME focused Asset Reconstruction Company striving for speedier resolution of non-performing assets (NPA) by unlocking the idle NPAs for productive purposes which would facilitate greater and easier flow of credit from the banking sector to the MSMEs

Reliable and timely information is sineque non for the growth of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), enabling them to identify opportunities and arrive at an optimum strategy. MSME Information is an initiative by SIDBI, aimed at improving the informational efficiency of the MSME sector. MSME Information will endeavour to provide users with easy access to a variety of informational material pertaining to the MSME sector, including MSME policies, MSME publications, Reports, MSME related important circulars, guidelines by Government of India, Reserve Bank of India, Ministries etc. A single-point and comprehensive source for content relevant to the MSME sector will benefit not only the MSMEs but also various stakeholders of the sector such as public sector institutions, commercial banks and international agencies.