Encouragement Bank (Bulgaria) to be EIF’s first guarantee intermediary in Accession Country

EIF has signed an agreement with Bulgaria's Encouragement Bank under the Loan Guarantee window of the European Commission's MAP mandate. EIF's guarantee will cover the credit risk of a portfolio of SME loans originated by Encouragement Bank. Thanks to the MAP support, SMEs will benefit from reduced collateral requirements. Established in 1999 in Sofia as a financial institution of the Bulgarian State, Encouragement Bank provides long-term financing to SMEs in their start-up, development and expansion stages.

This is the first time EIF is working with an intermediary in Bulgaria and the guarantee agreement marks the beginning of the implementation of the MAP guarantee facilities in the Accession Countries that became eligible for support under the MAP Facilities in March 2003. In order to mark this occasion, EIF's Chief Executive, Mr Francis Carpenter, was in Sofia yesterday to attend the official signing ceremony.