Our securitisation team closed a successful year in 2025 signing 20 transactions, which exceeds the initial target and shows the growing relevance of this financial instrument for the European markets. Against this background we sat down with Georgi Stoev, Head of Securitisation at the EIF to review recent developments and next steps.
Georgi, can you start by explaining securitisation to our audience?
Sure. Securitisation allows banks and financial institutions to obtain liquidity by transforming their illiquid loans into marketable securities. This process enables banks to grant more loans and support the real economy. It began in the 1970s and has been used extensively since then.
You've mentioned that securitisation isn't the danger it's often portrayed as. Can you elaborate on that?
Absolutely. Despite its complex nature, securitisation is not inherently dangerous. It's a financial tool, like any other, that can be used responsibly. In Europe, losses from securitisation have been minimal. The global financial crisis gave it a bad reputation, but that's changing as people are starting to understand it better.
What is the role – and ambition – of the EIF in the European securitisation market?
Just over the last ten years the EIF has invested in over 260 transactions for bit less than 50 billion, which allowed over €110 billion of new loans to reach ordinary people like you and me across all EU Member States and beyond.
The synthetic securitisation market, in particular, is a European phenomenon that has been booming immensely over the past couple of years – watch the video as I explain more on this. The EIF has signed many such transaction in Bulgaria, Romania, Poland, the Baltic countries, and many more. We see great potential in this field.
What are the three main challenges that securitisation faces today?
The first challenge is regulation. The current regulatory regime can hamper both supply and demand. The second is the need for the banking sector to feel more comfortable with the instrument so that we can reach a broader market coverage. The third challenge is the investment community's participation, which is often hindered by regulatory constraints.
Either way, allow me to quote the ECB’s Christine Lagarde who said that for Europe to have a properly functioning capital markets union, we need a very resilient and healthy securitisation market. I tend to agree 100% with that statement.
How do you see the future of securitisation in Europe?
I'm optimistic. With better regulation and a broader understanding, securitisation can play a vital role in the economy. It's about making securitisation great again, ensuring it supports SMEs and the real economy effectively.
We are constantly increasing our investment programme generally, nowadays our securitisation targets together with the EIB are around €5-6 billion per year. As far as the EIF is concerned, we have increased our own investment programme by €500 million and are looking for opportunities to do even more – which suggests that we are headed in the right direction.
Is securitisation able to support strategic goals such as the green transition?
There has been a lot of focus on this recently. Our analysis shows that 60% of the climate-related loans we supported in 2024 – for a total of €1.2 billion – were linked to renewable energy generation, 10% were dedicated to energy efficiency, and 30% were focusing on green transportation. In 2025, in turn, we committed €2.72 billion in support of the green transition objective, a substantial increase by all means.
More generally, our transactions have a minimum target that needs to be committed to climate related objectives. I think this is quite powerful and something that will continue to drive forward our ambitions for the year(s) to come.
What is the EIF’s next big strategic opportunity in your view?
Interesting question. I believe we must constantly innovate and challenge ourselves. We know that the markets are not stagnant, and so we can’t be standing still either.
Now we are planning to deploy a new system, referred to as the platform for quasi-European Safe Assets. This would practically attach the EIF directly to bonds and notes issued by special purpose vehicles (SPVs) so that we remain part of every transaction. This provides rock-solid credit performance and liquidity for future buyers allowing us to tackle further market gaps.
Thank you, Georgi, for sharing your insights. It’s been a pleasure having you.
Thank you for having me. It’s been a pleasure discussing this important topic.
Did you know?
The Quasi-European Safe Assets Plan
The new system, referred to as the platform for quasi-European safe assets, is being implemented in 2025-26. This platform aims to address the issue of low investor placement of issued transactions, which often remain idle on bank balance sheets.
The plan involves attaching a European asset-backed fund (EAF) directly to bonds and notes issued by special purpose vehicles (SPVs), ensuring that the fund is always part of the transaction. This creates a quasi-European safe asset, providing rock-solid credit performance and liquidity for future buyers.
The instrument is an adaptation of existing mechanisms to fill a specific market gap, making it a promising solution for future transactions. The EIF has been in the driving seat of this new platform.