With two different credit lines, the European Investment Bank (EIB) is making available to BNL BNP Paribas Group a total of EUR 350 million for financing Italian SMEs and midcaps, including through leasing schemes.
250 million for SMEs: The operation signed in Rome today will finance SMEs (firms with up to 250 employees) via term loans and leasing schemes managed by BNL and BNP Paribas Lease Group. At least 70% of the total amount of these operations is earmarked for smaller companies.
100 million for midcaps: This credit line, signed last June, has been fully disbursed to mid-sized firms with between 250 and 3 000 employees.
“Financing small and medium-sized enterprises is one of the pillars of the EIB’s activity in Italy, where we work in close cooperation with local banks, like BNL, with which we have a tried and tested relationship that allows us to pass on our funding advantage to businesses in the form of favourable maturities and interest rates”, said Dario Scannapieco, EIB Vice-President responsible for operations in Italy, Croatia and the Western Balkans.
“This new initiative with the EIB – added Fabio Gallia, CEO of BNL and head of the BNP Paribas Group in Italy – will enable us to direct fresh financial resources to Italian firms, especially small ones, to support their business development, research projects and product innovation – key factors for increasing their competitiveness both in Italy and abroad”.
In general, the loans will finance both new projects and schemes already underway. For SMEs and midcaps, they may cover up to 100% of the investment cost (with a maximum EUR 12.5 million per project) and be used to purchase, construct, extend or renovate buildings, purchase plant, equipment, vehicles or machinery, cover project-related costs, additional charges and intangible assets, including research, development and innovation costs, and provide the working capital that is always needed for business. The loans will target SMEs and midcaps in all productive sectors: agriculture, crafts, industry, commerce, tourism and services.
For midcaps making investments of between EUR 25 and 50 million, the EIB funding cannot exceed 50% of the project cost.
These operations fit into the long-standing working relationship between the EIB and BNL BNP Paribas Group for financing Italian firms under the framework agreement between the EIB, ABI and Confindustria.