Just as European Cyber Security Month gets underway, on Monday 2 October 2017, European Investment Bank (EIB) Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle signed a EUR 20m finance contract with the CS Communication & Systèmes (CS) Group to support the implementation of its 2017-2021 research and development programme.
“I am delighted to be signing the EIB's first cyber security finance contract in France today,” said Vice-President Ambroise Fayolle during the signing ceremony. “Indeed, given the risks and the emergence of new threats, it is our duty to finance innovative solutions to overcome these security challenges while meeting information auditing and control requirements for citizens. This financing with CS Group is part of the Juncker Plan and our priority action to promote innovation and support innovative companies. It is also covered by the objectives of the French Government's investment plan, and is one of the first projects to put this plan into practice.”
This financing will be key for the innovative company, which is a leader in the design and integration of mission-critical systems. The loan was granted with particularly attractive terms thanks to the EU guarantee it holds under the Investment Plan for Europe (commonly known as the Juncker Plan) and the EIB's excellent credit rating. This additional funding source will help to implement CS's Ambition 2021 plan, which aims to accelerate the group's growth on the basis of its strategic priorities. A designer, integrator and operator of mission-critical systems, CS makes regular innovations in area surveillance, air defence and cyber security to enable its institutional, industrial and vital organisation clients to face up to new challenges such as anti-drone defence, maritime surveillance, and the detection of cyberattacks in industrial contexts and at sea.
With innovation as one of its key priorities, the EIB Group provided EUR 13.5bn to innovative projects across Europe in 2016, supporting research programmes from large groups, midcaps and smaller companies. In France in 2016, 38% of the EIB Group's total investment of EUR 9.3bn was devoted to supporting companies, innovation and R&D.
The Juncker Plan is continuing to gather momentum in France, with a running total of 99 operations providing EUR 7.5bn in EIB Group financing set to mobilise EUR 35.4bn in additional investments.
