(IN BRIEF) The European Investment Fund (EIF) has finalized agreements with seven Romanian banks, unlocking an additional €500 million in financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Romania. The agreements will allow banks to offer SMEs better loan terms, including lower interest rates and longer repayment periods, thanks to EIF guarantees totaling €477.75 million. These guarantees, supported by the EU’s InvestEU programme and Recovery and Resilience Facility, aim to promote business competitiveness and sustainability. The financing will also help accelerate Romania’s green transition and support economic growth in various industries, including startups.
(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 24-Oct-2024 — /EuropaWire/ — The European Investment Fund (EIF) has secured agreements with seven Romanian banks, paving the way for additional financing of €500 million aimed at supporting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country. Through these new guarantees, totaling €477.75 million, the EIF will enable banks to offer Romanian businesses improved loan terms, including lower interest rates, longer repayment periods, and reduced collateral requirements. This effort is expected to catalyze at least €700 million in financing for Romanian SMEs, fostering competitiveness and sustainability across various industries.
The participating banks—UniCredit Bank, Alpha Bank, Libra Internet Bank, BRD Groupe Société Générale, Patria Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo Bank, and Garanti BBVA—will benefit from €309 million in guarantees for competitiveness and €168.75 million for sustainability. These agreements build on the EIF’s 2023 efforts, which saw €1 billion in guarantees provided to five Romanian banks, further strengthening access to finance for a wide range of companies, including startups.
Backed by the European Commission’s InvestEU programme and the Recovery and Resilience Facility, these guarantees are a key element in the EU’s drive to foster sustainable growth, as outlined by Romania’s national priorities. Marjut Falkstedt, Chief Executive of the EIF, emphasized that this initiative will enhance business opportunities, promoting economic growth, competitiveness, and a greener future for Romania.
This financing will be available in both Romanian lei and euros, with a particular focus on supporting cohesion regions in the country, encouraging business expansion, clean transport initiatives, and strengthening value chains.
As of 2 May 2024 the EIF aligns its logo to the EU family, reinforcing its role as a key EU player.
The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group. Its central mission is to support Europe’s micro, small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments which specifically target this market segment. In this role, the EIF contributes to the pursuit of key EU policy objectives such as competitiveness and growth, innovation and digitalisation, social impact, skills and human capital, climate action and environmental sustainability and more.
The InvestEU Member State Compartment enables the Member States to contribute part of their shared management funds, resources from the Recovery and Resilience Facility, and national resources to the InvestEU Fund by setting up a dedicated Member State Compartment. With this voluntary contribution, Member States can leverage on the InvestEU guarantee to support specific national priorities. Under the Member State Compartment, loans, guarantees or equity investments can be offered as a complement to other public and private investments.
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First published in this link of EuropaWIRE.
