What can EUR 315 billion do for a continent?

Keeping you up to date with our recent activities in Europe and around the world.

From crisis response to lasting impact
European Fund for Strategic Investments

To many, it sounded like a fairy tale: take a bit of money, invest it wisely and within three years it will have multiplied 15 times over. The key to fulfilling this promise was a EUR 21 billion guarantee and investment programme, the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI).

In July 2018, exactly three years after EFSI started operations, the EIB Group surpassed its initial goal and mobilised EUR 335 billion in new investments, more than the EUR 315 billion originally targeted.

Read more about EFSI on eib.org

Here’s how EUR 315 billion is making a difference in Europe

The EIB’s Economics Department and Europe’s Joint Research Centre estimate that EFSI operations will increase EU GDP by 1.3% and create more than 1.4 million jobs by 2020.

Measured against the size of the economy, the biggest impact of EFSI is in countries hard hit by the crisis, such as Cyprus, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Portugal and Spain.

Podcast: How EFSI hit its target

In this episode of ‘A Dictionary of Finance’ we hear from Iliyana Tsanova, deputy managing director of EFSI. She lays out the reasoning behind the programme and tells the story of how it was created as part of Europe’s response to the global financial crisis.

Listen to the podcast here

The impact of EFSI

Since its launch, hundreds of projects have benefitted from EFSI. All of them contribute to making our continent more social, green, innovative or competitive. Here’s a glimpse of projects EFSI helps to flourish.

Titanium recycling gives Europe a valuable new metal supply

Titanium is light, doesn’t corrode and bends without breaking, but it is hard to refine. EcoTitanium’s new furnace technologies contribute to the circular economy and reduce waste by recycling titanium scrap and putting it back into the manufacturing process.

Read the full story here

3 new ways to treat cancer

Companies developing new cancer treatments have a hard time raising the money to carry out their research, so the European Investment Bank finances them.

Read the full story here

Acciona breaks new ground in renewable energy

Spain is one of the top locations in the world for wind energy. The Spanish multinational Acciona is heavily involved in wind energy at home and overseas, as part of its move into sustainable development.

Read the full story here

Air travel safety: literally on the radar

A Danish aerospace firm takes radar technology developed to stop smugglers and uses it to make air travel safer.

Read the full story here

Video: How the Juncker Plan works

In Germany

A new treatment for cancer, an old tradition kept alive and electric satellites in space – these are just some of the fascinating projects the EIB Group has financed in Germany under EFSI.

In Poland

Affordable flats for families, improved production capacities for one of the country’s biggest food producers and safer systems for cross-border trains – learn more about these Polish projects financed by the EIB with the help of the Juncker Plan.

In Sweden

Cyber security for businesses, the biggest onshore wind farm in Europe and improved social, telecom or energy infrastructure: just some of the sectors supported by EFSI financing in Sweden.

In Spain

Innovation means making new ideas come true. To come to life these ideas need a number of supporting factors. Financing is one.

Watch more

Browse EFSI videos on the EIB’s YouTube channel

Want a good summer read?

A History of Europe in 6 Projects

Six stories that take you back into the past six decades of Europe’s history. They tell vivid tales about projects in which the EIB stood behind the key developments in Europe's economy and helped turn good intentions into reality.

This book is available as an eBook in English, French, German, Italian and Spanish.

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