27/06/2013 (Agence Europe) - New Portuguese bank guarantee scheme approved. On Thursday 27 June, the European Commission approved a new Portuguese scheme providing €2.8 billion in state guarantees. The scheme will allow participating banks to continue acting as guarantors for both existing and new loans on an EIB loan portfolio of up to €6 million to fund Portuguese companies without compromising their liquidity position. The scheme is needed because as result of the Portuguese sovereign debt crisis, banks' ratings fell below the EIB credit risk criteria, rendering most, if not all, Portuguese banks ineligible for EIB loans. (MB/transl.fl)