How can chambers of commerce help businesses navigate an increasingly uncertain global economy? ESCI-UPF professor Joan Pere Plaza and Universitat de València professor Iván Medina explore the implications of Catalonia’s new legislation and the key role these institutions play in supporting SMEs and facilitating international trade.
On October 7, the Parliament of Catalonia passed a new law on chambers of commerce. The law meets a long-held request from Catalonia’s 13 chambers of commerce and grants the Catalan chamber system its own legislation. The Catalan law came a decade after the approval of a new state-level legislative framework, which laid the foundations for a new organisational model for chambers of commerce. What significance does this new law have for the functioning of the Catalan economy? What role do chambers of commerce play in the business opportunities of small and medium-sized enterprises?
According to the Nobel Prize-winning economist Douglass North, institutions constitute the rules of the game in the market, as they enable and constrain individuals’ behaviour. Since institutions are the rules, organisations are the players. Both develop simultaneously and are adjusted to meet the needs of the market and companies, through processes of policy and rule design involving companies, public authorities, trade unions, political parties, and business associations, among others. Chambers of commerce are key players at the local and regional levels. They serve as the natural link between small and medium-sized enterprises and the policymakers who determine their future in both domestic and international markets.
The new Catalan law enhances the representative function of the chambers and specifies the four main areas in which they act: advancing the general interests of commerce, industry, services and shipping; working with the public administrations; offering services to businesses; and promoting the Catalan language. It also includes a step-by-step increase in public funding, raising it from €3 million to €7 million over three years, and introduces new «Chamber Plans» to determine each chamber’s economic priorities. It is thus contributing to the move towards a hybrid model, meaning a funding system that combines public funds with its own income.
The provision of services seems to be a crucial factor, not only because it ensures the continuity and independence of the chambers, but also because it is of great importance to small enterprises and SMEs. For instance, take export-oriented SMEs. Because of their size and limited organisational capacity, a foreign market can frequently prevent them from moving abroad, since changes in the rules of the game introduce greater uncertainty for the firm. It is exactly in this situation that chambers of commerce provide value by interpreting the new regulations, passing on the concerns of businesses, and assisting firms in adapting to the growing intensity of trade tensions and the disruption of value chains
In Catalonia and elsewhere, chambers of commerce serve as channels for dialogue between business leaders and public authorities, and the new Catalan law on chambers will contribute to the resilience of our markets in times of uncertainty.
This article was originally published on 16/10/2026 at ESCI-UPF.News as one of the articles preceding the Chambers of Commerce – 5th International Conference, which will take place on 19-20 November 2026 @ ESCI-UPF Barcelona.
