Brussels, 21/10/2009 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 19 October, the European Investment Bank (EIB) granted a €100 million loan to MKB Bank Zrt (MKB) to finance projects by small and medium-sized companies (SMEs) and mid-cap companies.
This loan is the EIB's contribution to the coordinated effort with other international financial institutions - the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the World Bank - to provide up to €24.5 billion to support investments by SMEs, which have been badly hit by the global economic crisis, in the central and eastern European region. The EIB is committed to contributing €11 billion to this package, mainly in the form of lending to SMEs via banking partners such as MKB.
The loan granted on Monday is a new type of loan in line with the EIB's priority of strengthening its support for Europe's SMEs in the face of the current difficult market conditions. To that end, the Bank has simplified procedures, increased the scope for financing by covering also intangibles and working capital, and improved transparency by working towards a more effective transfer of the EIB's funding advantage to the final beneficiary.
The loan will finance projects undertaken by SMEs (companies with fewer than 250 employees), with €40 million going to mid-cap companies (with between 250 and 3,000 employees), improving their access to long-term finance. The EIB funds will support small-scale projects in the fields of energy, environmental protection, infrastructure, the knowledge-based economy, industry and services, including tourism. (O.L./transl.rt)