EIB and ICF support SME and midcap projects in Catalonia

PRESS RELEASE

BEI/14/116

Luxembourg, 19 May 2014

EIB and ICF support SME and midcap projects in Catalonia

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has granted a EUR 150 million loan to Institut Català de Finances (ICF) designed to boost the flow of funding to SMEs (firms with up to 250 employees) and midcaps (firms with up to 3000 employees) in order to stimulate economic growth and job creation. The loan agreement was signed by EIB Vice-President Magdalena Álvarez i and the Institut Català de Finances’ CEO, Josep Ramon Sanromà.

The EIB funds will be used to finance small and medium-scale projects mounted by SMEs and midcaps in Catalonia. Amongst other things, the EIB loan will support the RDI activities of such firms and help them to expand globally, increase their exports and improve their productivity and competitiveness.

The EIB credit line will also help to tackle youth unemployment. The loan aims to create jobs for young people and the self-employed by targeting SMEs and midcaps that offer schemes to support young people in their first job and provide them with training on top of their secondary school education.

ICF will match the EIB loan with the same amount, meaning that a total of EUR 300 million will be made available to finance SMEs and midcaps. The EIB loan will provide such firms with finance on attractive terms (favourable interest rates and long maturities) that ICF will pass on to the end customers.

In 2013, the EIB Group (including the European Investment Fund) supported SMEs and midcaps to the tune of EUR 21 900 million (EUR 18 500 million of which came from the EIB), benefiting some 230 000 firms throughout Europe. In Spain, the EIB provided EUR 4 836 million worth of new credit lines for financing the investment projects of more than 45 000 such firms.

Background information

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.

ICF is a financial institution founded in 1985 and accountable to the Catalan government. Its main objective is to facilitate access to finance for Catalonia’s businesses, especially SMEs and midcaps, to help boost the region’s economic recovery and growth.

Press contacts

EIB: Matilde del Valle, +352 4379 83154, delvalle@eib.org

Website: www.eib.org/press - Press Office: +352 4379 21000 - press@eib.org

ICF: Xavier Gispert, comunicacio@icf.cat