The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a €70 million loan to NLB Komercijalna banka to expand lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Serbia, as announced in an official statement published by the EBRD. Extended under the EBRD’s Financial Intermediaries Framework, the loan will fund working capital and investment loans for private businesses — with particular attention to companies outside major urban centers, where access to long-term finance has historically been hardest to come by. At least 30% of the proceeds must go toward green economy investments, including energy efficiency and renewable energy projects.
SMEs are the backbone of Serbia’s economy, accounting for a significant share of employment and economic output — yet the financing they need to grow, hire, and modernize remains stubbornly out of reach for many, especially in smaller towns and rural areas.
EBRD Director of Financial Institutions for the Western Balkans Aleksandra Vukosavljević said the loan will help NLB Komercijalna banka “further expand lending to small and medium-sized enterprises across Serbia, supporting business growth, job creation and regional development.” The green investment requirement is not an add-on — it reflects a deliberate strategy to ensure that SME growth and the transition to a more sustainable economy move forward together rather than in parallel.
The EBRD has invested more than €10.7 billion across 405 projects in Serbia, making it the country’s leading institutional investor. This loan fits squarely within the Bank’s three-pronged focus in Serbia: private-sector competitiveness, the green economy, and sustainable infrastructure.
For Serbian SMEs, the practical impact is straightforward — more access to the kind of patient, affordable capital that lets businesses invest, expand, and create jobs, rather than simply survive from one credit cycle to the next.