EIB to grant 190 million euros in loans to Romania most affected by Covid-19

BUCHAREST (Romania), Oct.22 (SeeNews) – The European Investment Bank (EIB) announced on Thursday that it will grant 190 million euros ($ 225 million) in loans to hundreds of Romanian companies most affected by the economic, social and health impact of COVID-19[FEMININE[FEMININE

The loans will be made through Romanian bank CEC, Intesa Sanpaolo Bank Romania, Unicredit and BRD Sogelease, the EIB said in a press release.

The loans will enable working capital, leasing and capital investment by SMEs and mid-cap companies across the country. Romanian companies will be able to benefit from the new financing in local currency and euros. The program is available immediately and businesses can apply through branches of partner banks across the country.

“Enabling businesses across Romania to continue investing is essential for Romania to overcome the economic, social and employment challenges caused by COVID-19,” said Florin Citu, Romanian Minister of Finance and member of the Council of Governors of the EIB.

“The new regime is better and more flexible. It allows working capital spending, including the payment of salaries, social security and taxes, without a minimum maturity requirement to help mitigate the economic impact of COVID-19, ”Citu added.

Businesses involved in manufacturing, commerce, agriculture, tourism and transportation will be the main beneficiaries of the loans.

The initiative represents a COVID-19 economic resilience support program in Romania provided by the EIB, as part of the bank‘s € 20 billion global response to reduce the economic impact of the pandemic.

“The EIB is committed to supporting private sector investments in Romania and around the world and to working with local partners to build economic resilience to COVID-19. As the new EIB Vice-President responsible for operations in Romania, I look forward to supporting transformational investments across the country in the coming years and further strengthening the EIB’s close cooperation with its Romanian partners ”, said said Christian Kettel Thomsen, Vice-President of the EIB.

($ = 0.8452 euros)