05/12/2007 (Agence Europe) - Cooperative banks, “privileged partners” for small and medium-sized enterprises, should have their real value recognised. This was the main message from the conference organised at the Committee of the Regions in Brussels on Tuesday 4 December by UEAPME, which represents the interests of European craft and SME employers at European level, and the EACB, the European Association of Co-operative Banks. “Cooperative banks have traditionally been the main credit providers for small businesses, offering a financing backbone for Europe's 'classe moyenne' without which many small enterprises would simply not exist,” said UEAPME Secretary General Hans-Werner Müller in a press release. “It is a pity that this role is not always fully recognised,” he added. (A.B.)