EIB and BNP Paribas Fortis provide EUR 500 million for Belgian SMEs and midcaps

January 6, 2016

European Investment Bank and BNP Paribas Fortis provide an additional EUR 500 million credit line for Belgian SMEs and midcaps.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and BNP Paribas Fortis have signed a new partnership agreement for a EUR 250 million loan designed to support projects by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and midcaps. In total, an additional EUR 500 million will therefore be provided, half by BNP Paribas Fortis and half by the EIB.

The EIB – the European Union's financing institution – intends to use its "Loans for SMEs and midcaps" programme to support their economic development and competitiveness. With that in mind, the EIB works with commercial banks which serve as intermediaries and whose network and expertise in the SMEs and midcaps segment play a key role in the implementation of this programme.

As before, the loans will be provided in the form of a credit line managed by BNP Paribas Fortis in support of enterprises with up to 250 employees for SMEs and 3 000 employees for midcaps.

All projects must be carried out in the EU and may not cost more than EUR 25 million. The EIB's "Loans for SMEs and midcaps" programme is flexible and transparent. The key feature of the Bank's support is lower interest rates and the beneficiary enterprises are explicitly informed of this.

Including this new credit line, BNP Paribas Fortis will have made available nearly EUR 2 billion for Belgian SMEs and midcaps since 2009 in collaboration with the EIB.

At the agreement's signing ceremony, Max Jadot (CEO of BNP Paribas Fortis) said: "BNP Paribas Fortis is pleased to provide further support to its business customers and help finance their projects, thanks in part to this new agreement with the EIB. Self-employed people, professionals, SMEs and midcaps form the backbone of our economy and it is vital that they can obtain the resources required to continue to grow. Thanks to these credit lines in partnership with the EIB, over 2 600 Belgian enterprises in a wide variety of sectors have received a loan on keen terms via our network over the past seven years."

Pim van Ballekom (EIB Vice-President) stated: “I am delighted by this new operation with BNP Paribas Fortis. It is important for Belgian businesses to be able to continue benefiting from the EIB’s terms to finance their projects and it is by bringing together our respective tools and skills that we can help them best. This is how we support the business competitiveness, growth and dynamism that is vital to our economies.”

Each year, the amount of loans provided by the EIB to SMEs and midcaps in the European Union gets bigger. Last year, the Bank provided EUR 22.2 billion, which was passed on via 240 partners to more than 110 000 SMEs and midcaps. This represents substantial support and assures businesses of the ongoing availability of financing for their projects.

The European Investment Bank (www.eib.org) is the long-term financing institution of the European Union (EU). The shareholders of the Bank are the Member States of the EU. The EIB provides long-term finance to enterprises in support of quality projects to contribute to the achievement of the EU's key objectives. For further information, see www.eib.org and for more specific details www.eib.org/sme

BNP Paribas Fortis offers the Belgian market a comprehensive package of financial services for private individuals, the self-employed, professionals and SMEs. In the insurance sector, BNP Paribas Fortis works closely with Belgian market leader AG Insurance. The bank also provides wealthy individuals, corporations and public and financial institutions with custom solutions for which it can draw on BNP Paribas’ know-how and international network.

About BNP Paribas
BNP Paribas has a presence in 75 countries with more than 185,000 employees, including 145,000 in Europe. It ranks highly in its two core activities: Retail Banking & Services (comprised of Domestic Markets and International Financial Services) and Corporate & Institutional Banking. In Europe, the Group has four domestic markets (Belgium, France, Italy and Luxembourg) and BNP Paribas Personal Finance is the leader in consumer lending. BNP Paribas is rolling out its integrated retail banking model across Mediterranean basin countries, in Turkey, in Eastern Europe and a large network in the western part of the United States. In its Corporate & Institutional Banking and International Financial Services activities, BNP Paribas also enjoys top positions in Europe, a strong presence in the Americas and solid and fast-growing businesses in Asia-Pacific.

Press contacts :

EIB

Sabine Parisse: +352 4379 83340 or +352 621 45 91 59, s.parisse@eib.org

Tim Smit: +352 4379 89076 or +352 691 28 64 23, t.smit@eib.org

Press Office: +352 4379 21000 – press@eib.org

BNP Paribas Fortis

Hilde Junius: +32 2 565 47 37 or +32 478 88 29 60, hilde.junius@bnpparibasfortis.com