Even though Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) have become the most popular sector in Malaysia, many start-up entrepreneurs struggle to survive in the first five years due to challenges and risks. Therefore, the risk identification step in risk management becomes one of the critical steps and must be addressed by entrepreneurs. This paper aims to identify the risk factors of start-up businesses in Small and Medium Enterprises and evaluate their weightage by interviewing experts in this sector. The data collected were analysed using a thematic analysis procedure in ATLAS. ti. It is found that there are five main risk factors in a start-up business in SMEs: Strategic Risk, Financial Risk, Operational Risk, Entrepreneurial Traits and Political Risk. Additionally, Strategic Risk is given the highest weightage, while Political Risk is given the lowest. The finding is significant for developing a mathematical risk management index and can be a guideline for new start-up businesses.
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