- EIB guarantee to Millennium bcp will enable up to €400 million in new credit to be provided to Portuguese mid-caps, making it easier for them to access finance.
- The new loans are also expected to benefit companies operating in less developed regions of Portugal.
Millennium bcp and the European Investment Bank (EIB) have signed a guarantee agreement to make it easier for Portuguese mid-cap companies to access finance against a backdrop of high interest rates, challenging operating environment and reduced credit supply. The EIB guarantee agreement will enable Millennium bcp to build a portfolio of new loans of up to €400 million with better credit conditions.
The EIB will provide a 50% guarantee to Millennium bcp to enhance its financing and risk-taking capacity and, as a result, generate new lending of up to €400 million. The transaction is expected to benefit the Portuguese economy by mobilising new investments worth up to €560 million.
The signing ceremony took place today, 11 January, in Lisbon, in the presence of the Head of Division for Western Europe from EIB, Gemma Feliciani, and the Vice-Chairman of the Executive Committee of Millennium bcp, João Nuno Palma, who agreed that the rapid mobilisation of financing for the Portuguese companies is strategic to ensure that they continue to have the liquidity to operate and contribute to the country's productive capacity for goods and services.
"Companies' financing needs are currently very high due, among other factors, to the high cost of energy and the ongoing disruptions in the supply chain," said Birthe Bruhn-Léon, Head of the Financial Institutions Department at the EIB. "The guarantee operation signed today with our long-time partner Millennium bcp will allow it to increase its financing to the real economy through mid-caps and the public sector, further supporting Portugal's economic growth and stabilisation of employment."
“Following the success of this partnership during the pandemic period, Millennium bcp is committed to quickly operationalizing and making available to the business community, under advantageous conditions, this new support in the amount of €400 million with the guarantee of the EIB -- lines that will contribute to the growth of exports and the Portuguese economy,” Miguel Maya, CEO of Millennium bcp, said. “We aim to continue to merit the preference of innovative entrepreneurs and managers, which requires on our part, along with a competitive offer of financing instruments – such as the guarantee we are now presenting – working closely with our customers".
The operation is consistent with the strategic objective of the EU and the European Investment Bank to support uninterrupted access to finance for European mid-cap companies given their importance for growth, competitiveness, innovation and employment.
In 2023 the EIB achieved a total volume of financing to financial institutions in Portugal of c. €1 billion to the benefit of key EU policy objectives, ranking fifth among EU Countries, through a mix of guarantee, funding and securitisation products with a specific focus on support to SMEs and Mid-caps.
About Millennium bcp
Millennium bcp is the leading bank for companies in Portugal, with an 18.6% market share in loans to SMEs and more than €17 billion in total lending. Millennium bcp is the market leader for the most significant customer segments, with a share of 23% in Factoring and Confirming, 24% in Leasing, 21% among Exporters, 45% for European Funds (Portugal 2020) and 15.5% of the Portuguese Mutual Guarantee System. It is also the #1 bank for financing lines with an EIF/EIB guarantee, with the largest contract ever in Europe signed between the EIF and a commercial bank worth €2.83 billion.
