Brussels, 17/10/2011 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 14 October, the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced that it was to lend €30 million to the Bulgarian bank CIBANK JSC for the joint financing of projects initiated by SMEs, mid-cap companies and local authorities in Bulgaria.
The EIB funds will also be used to support projects in the areas of industry and services, and will be coupled by grants provided by the European Commission and the Kozloduy International Decommissioning Support Fund (KIDSF).
The loan corresponds to the EIB's priority of helping to attenuate the effects of the financial crisis by making it easier for European SMEs to have long-term access to resources. To this end, the EIB is working closely with well-established financial institutions, such as CIBank, which are familiar with the local market and whose clients are made up of SMEs, mid-caps and local authorities. The EIB has previously granted a loan of €25 million to CIBank to fund SME investments. (OL/transl.fl)