site.btaEuropean Investment Bank Marks 25 Years of Providing Financial Support to Bulgaria

Luxembourg, July 20 (BTA) - The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group on Thursday marked the 25th anniversary of its first loan in Bulgaria and reconfirmed its commitment to supporting the country's economy via loans, the provision of advisory services, and through blending of its resources with EU grants, the Bank said in a press release.

Delivering a keynote speech at a conference on financial instruments in the construction sector, EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudak praised Bulgaria for successfully using modern means of financing.

"In 25 years, we have supported the Bulgarian economy with loans and guarantees for nearly 5 billion euro. We look forward to continuing this fruitful co-operation and focusing more and more on innovative methods of financing, including combining EIB loans with EU grants. Bulgaria is among the regional frontrunners in this respect, said Hudak, who oversees EIB operations in the so-called cohesion countries.

In 2016, the EIB Group extended loans and guarantees of 467 million euro to Bulgaria, which became only the third EU country to implement the SME Initiative. The initiative, which involves risk-sharing between the EIB Group and the local banking sector, will mobilise substantial new loans to support projects promoted by small and medium-sized enterprises.

Last year, the EIB also provided a separate 150 million euro intermediated loan to the Bulgarian Development Bank AD to finance small and medium-scale projects promoted by SMEs and midcaps.

EIB is the European Union's bank, owned by and representing the interests of the European Union Member States. The bank works closely with other EU institutions to implement EU policy.