>@EIB/EIB

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is lending EUR 150 million to Europejski Fundusz Leasingowy (EFL) to finance projects in the areas of industry and services, including energy, environmental protection, health and education as well as investments supporting the development of the knowledge economy in Poland.  SMEs and mid-cap companies will be the final beneficiaries of this EIB loan. 

This loan is in line with the EIB’s priority of strengthening its support for Europe’s SMEs and mid-caps to help improve their access to long-term finance. To this end, the EIB is joining forces with well established financing institutions, like EFL, that know the local market and have well developed network of branches with SMEs and mid-cap companies as their customers.  EFL is the leading leasing company in Poland, with an established franchise and strong brand recognition. EFL was founded in 1991 and has been part of the French Crédit Agricole S.A group since 2001.

Building on the first two operations with EFL, this new loan allows EFL and EIB to continue their successful cooperation.  Under this intermediated loan EFL will benefit from the SME Finance Facility, a special scheme supported by European Commission grants. Aimed at further developing strong and competitive small and medium-sized enterprises, the SME Finance Facility provides the EIB’s partner financial institutions with incentives to lend to SMEs.

Background:

The EIB is the long-term lending bank of the European Union. Its main task is to contribute towards the integration, balanced development and economic and social cohesion of the EU Member States. Besides supporting projects in the EU Member States, its lending activities also include financing investments in future Member States of the EU and EU partner countries.

The EIB raises substantial volumes of funds on the capital markets, which it lends on favourable terms to projects furthering EU policy objectives. It is the largest supranational borrower and its consistent AAA rating is underpinned by firm shareholder support, a strong capital base, excellent asset quality, conservative risk management and a sound funding strategy.