The European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Union's long-term financing institution, is providing two global loans (credit lines) totalling EUR 147 million(1) to partner banks in Poland. The two banks will use EIB's long-term funds for financing of small and medium-scale projects in the field of environmental protection, energy saving, infrastructure, industry and tourism throughout Poland:

  • EUR 100 million is made available to HypoVereinsbank; and
  • EUR 47 million (out of EUR 100 million authorised by the EIB's Board) is going to BRE Bank(2).

Poland is among the ten Central European countries(3) which are candidates for EU membership. Its Accession Partnership with the EU specifically foresees investment support on compliance with Community norms in fields such as environmental protection and the development of SMEs. As in the EU, in Central Europe the EIB finances large schemes with direct loans and smaller scale projects through suitable intermediaries, by means of so-called global loans. Including a number of banks in Poland, presently some forty banks in the ten candidate countries have access to EIB's global loan financing. The EIB intends to continue and expand its cooperation with local banks in Central Europe by providing further global loans to suitable partners such as HypoVereinsbank and BRE in Poland.

Commenting on the new global loans, EIB Vice-President Wolfgang Roth said: 'In line with the EIB's specific role to assist the ten Central European candidates for EU membership, our global loans make available suitable long-term funds to financial intermediaries operating at a national or regional level. Whenever possible and appropriate, we make these long-term funds available not only in foreign but also in local currency. Our funding will support the financial viability of smaller scale projects while adding long-term finance in Poland, an important element for the diversification of the country's financial system."

The EIB was set up in 1958 under the Treaty of Rome to lend to projects furthering European Union policies. While strengthening weaker EU regions has always been its main goal, the Bank also lends to projects outside the European Union under the Union's co-operation policy toward third countries. Since 1990 nearly EUR 10 billion were lent to projects in the ten Central European countries which have applied for EU membership. Owned by the Member States, the EIB raises the bulk of its funds on the capital markets worldwide where its bond issues regularly benefit from the Bank's `AAA' credit rating.


(1) 1 euro= 0.647500 GBP, 4.36870 PLN.

(2) HypoVereinsbank is expected to merge within short with Bank Przemyslowo-Handlowy in Kraków (BPH); BRE Bank intends to merge with Bank Handlowy w Warszawie (BHW).

(3) Bulgaria, The Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia.