DBT Capital secures SEK 285 million to lend to Swedish SMEs with EIF backing

The European Investment Fund (EIF) has signed a guarantee transaction worth SEK 114 million with Swedish SME lender DBT Capital. The transaction, which covers two distinct investment areas — innovation and digitalisation on one side, and sustainability on the other — will allow DBT to make available a new portfolio of SME-lending of up to SEK 285 million to further support innovation-driven Swedish companies by providing them with debt financing for sustainability, innovation and digitalization investments. DBT will also promote the growth of Swedish SMEs and small mid-caps active in sustainable and energy efficiency by providing tailor-made financing terms.

"We’re excited and proud to yet again receive EIF’s invaluable backing through this partnership which comes at a time when SME’s in Sweden have great need for financing to thrive and grow. This will allow us to back more companies that make a difference in sustainability, digitalisation, and innovation – areas of entrepreneurship and enterprise where Sweden has a pole position.” says Alexis Kopylov, Founder and CEO of DBT.

EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt commented: “This is our fourth collaboration with DBT and we’re glad to continue our partnership under the InvestEU programme for the benefit of local businesses. Their experience in the local market and the fact that they reach an underserved segment of SMEs is invaluable in our mission to support European SMEs across the board."

Since its inception in 2017, DBT has built a unique position within growth financing to Swedish SMEs leveraging its proprietary underwriting and credit intelligence technology platform. The platform leverages real-time client data, enabling tailored and scalable funding with faster turnaround to borrowers. Since 2017 DBT Capital has lent in excess of SEK 3 billion to over 300 Swedish SME companies.

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the EIB Group. It supports Europe’s SMEs by improving their access to finance through a wide range of selected financial intermediaries. The EIF designs, promotes and implements equity and debt financing instruments targeting SMEs. In this role, EIF fosters EU objectives in support of entrepreneurship, growth, innovation, research and development, the green and digital transitions and employment.

The InvestEU programme provides the European Union with crucial long-term funding by leveraging substantial private and public funds in support of a sustainable recovery. It also helps mobilise private investments for the European Union’s policy priorities, such as the European Green Deal and the digital transition. The InvestEU programme brings together under one roof the multitude of EU financial instruments currently available to support investment in the European Union, making funding for investment projects in Europe simpler, more efficient, and more flexible. The programme consists of three components: the InvestEU Fund, the InvestEU Advisory Hub and the InvestEU Portal. The InvestEU Fund is implemented through financial partners that will invest in projects using the EU budget guarantee of €26.2 billion. The entire budget guarantee will back the investment projects of the implementing partners, increase their risk-bearing capacity, and thus mobilise at least €372 billion in additional investment.

DBT Capital was founded in 2017 with the ambition of creating better growth opportunities for Sweden's small and medium-sized companies. Leveraging its credit intelligence platform DBT combines a rational tech and data-driven process with a personal and qualitative collaboration to offer SMEs simple access to growth funding. DBT's corporate financing is aimed at limited companies across all industries that need to borrow SEK 3-35 million. DBT is a registered financial institution with the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority.