Territory development through the finance innovation tools: the pecorino bond

The aim of the paper is to analyse how innovative financial tools can contribute to the development and sustainability of the territory and his local products. This research is supported by a qualitative research of case study (Yin, 2014). Thus, the paper applies the CAOS model of micro-entrepreneurship by Paoloni (2011) with a few changes which make it possible to describe all variables that involve the company in a certain economic context. Using such model, we‘re able to share some factors and to classify different types of connections, identifying several kinds of existing relations. Into economic context of Sardina, a little island in south west of Italy, where there are more than 60,000 agricultural enterprises, of which 60% shepherds, there is a constant difficulty in obtaining funding. This difficulty very often is related to the uncertainty of seasonal activity. Our work show how the use of innovative financial tools can encourage access to credit capital, even non-banking, of SME operating in the agrifood sector, and then how these innovative tools can promote the development and sustainability of the territory and his local products. This could be possible through the aggregation and cooperation of firms The paper also shows the active role of local authority "Regione Sardegna". Following the case study, also allows a possible valuation of local products (Pecorino cheese) as, through a rotary pledge, they are the basis of the guarantees offered to the subscribers of the bond. Our work contributes to expansion of studies on the innovative financial tools for the promotion and development of the local agri-food heritage. This can be possible, on the one hand, through the growth of private local companies by the marketing of local products, and then, through the financial sustainability of the public authority that indirectly will see increased tax revenue deriving from the production oflocal activities. The future research will be focused on the analysis of the specific economic results of the financial operation described here. Furthermore, will be focused on possible similar cases with the aim to development local product through innovative financial tools The limit of our research are related to the short observation time since the finance instrument was issued, only in 2018. Furthermore, another limit for our research is the narrow territorial base of observation.