SMES TRADE FINANCE FACILITY 3

The project is the EIB's third Trade Finance Guarantee Programme for Greece provided to international commercial banks to cover the payment risk of trade and export finance transactions undertaken by Greek banks and ultimately on behalf of Greek SMEs and Midcaps.

Current economic conditions in Greece still constrain the availability of trade financing for local SMEs and MidCaps, and EIB's guarantee under TFF3 is expected to continue playing a pivotal role in enabling SMEs to have access to international trade instruments, which Greek commercial banks still cannot easily offer at the scale required (without the EIB or other IFI guarantee). As Greek banks remain non-investment grade, international banks limit their direct exposure on Greece under trade finance transactions. EIB's support will ensure that Greece's trade activities will continue to increase, leading to security and expansion of jobs within the SME sector, contribute to cohesion and convergence objectives, and support the country's economic growth. The project is also expected to support Greek trade activity during and after the undergoing coronavirus epidemic, as well as indirectly support projects that bring a positive impact on climate change.

In line with the EIB's policy to ensure that loans and guarantees comply with EU regulations, in particular in the fields of environment and public procurement, the Bank will require the intermediating banks to take all the requisite measures to ensure that the environment and procurement procedures for all projects within the guaranteed portfolio comply with the relevant EU legislation and the applicable national legislation, provided that it is in comformity with EU rules.

See Environmental aspects