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Add to Preferred SourcesThe European Investment Bank Group, formed by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Investment Fund (EIF), have granted BBVA a EUR 60 million synthetic guarantee that will be used, to provide up to EUR 360 million to finance new investment projects of small Spanish SMEs and Midcaps.
The agreement has been made possible thanks to the support of the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI). EFSI is the central pillar of the Investment Plan for Europe, known as the “Juncker Plan”. Its support increases the EIB Group’s capacity to finance investment projects that, in line with the Plan’s criteria, involve activities that by their structure or nature have a higher risk profile but which foster firms’ competitiveness and create jobs.
The agreement is an innovative financing operation, as it is the first corporate loan securitization to be supported by the blockchain technology in the European Union. Blockchain offers a better client experience by automating the negotiation process and minimizing operational risks, thanks to the inherent characteristics of this technology.
About this project, EIB Vice-President Emma Navarro stated: “We are delighted to support the EIB Group’s third mezzanine guarantee operation in Spain. Thanks to our partnership with BBVA, Spanish SMEs will be able to benefit from the advantages of our financing. This agreement combines EIF and EIB resources under the Juncker Plan to increase BBVA’s support for Spanish businesses, fostering job creation and economic growth”.
Over the last few years, the EIB and BBVA have signed a number of other operations targeting SMEs. In November 2017, they provided EUR 300 million to finance innovation and the digitalisation of small Spanish businesses; in June 2016, they launched a EUR 600 million credit line; and in 2015, they approved a EUR 1 billion credit line to foster economic recovery and job creation in SMEs.
The new agreement aims to foster support for small and medium-sized firms in all sectors of the Spanish economy, providing them with loans with favorable conditions of interest rates and longer repayment periods.
Original source: EIB
Published on 20 December 2018