First European Conference on the Financing of SMEs

As part of the preparations for the forthcoming European Council meeting on 27 and 28 June, Pierre Moscovici, French Minister of the Economy and Finance, convened today, in partnership with the European Investment Bank Group (EIB) and the SME Finance association, the first European conference on the financing of SMEs, a major event reflecting the great importance attached to the role of SMEs in the return to growth in Europe.

Attended by Fleur Pellerin, Minister Delegate with responsibility for small and medium-sized enterprises, and only a few days away from the European Council meeting devoted to growth and employment, this forum provided company directors, investors, banks, central banks and French and European public authorities with an opportunity to discuss different practices in Europe and to propose innovative solutions for financing European SMEs.

While the European Growth Pact is reinforcing the EIB's activities in France with a target of EUR 7bn a year, BPI-France and the EIB signed a partnership agreement at the Conference for the joint-financing of support measures for French SMEs. In the presence of EIB President Werner Hoyer, the agreement was signed by EIB Vice-President Philippe de Fontaine Vive and the CEO of BPI-FRANCE, Nicolas Dufourcq.

In parallel, the European Investment Fund (EIF), the EIB’s subsidiary specialising in SME financing, and the BPCE Group signed two guarantee operations with EU support to provide a total of EUR 2bn worth of loans to SMEs in France.

This first European conference for financing SMEs also highlighted several French SME funding initiatives such as the revitalisation of the stock market for SMEs and midcaps, the development of the regulatory framework to foster investment in companies by insurers and the Bank of France’s promotion of a marketplace initiative for financing SMEs.