UniCredit Bank first to sign EU Guarantee Agreement with the EIF in Hungary

As a result of the agreement with UniCredit Bank Hungary Zrt., the European Community through the COMPETITIVENESS AND INNOVATION FRAMEWORK PROGRAMME (CIP), will provide guarantees free of charge for development credits provided to small and medium enterprises. The EU guarantee will be managed by the European Investment Fund (EIF). Under this agreement, UniCredit Bank can grant development credit with simplified conditions to enterprises which cannot provide sufficient collateral.

UniCredit Bank is the first bank to enter into a guarantee agreement with the European Investment Fund as part of the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (2007-2013) of the European Community in Hungary. One of the main objectives of this programme aims at facilitating access to credit for small and medium-sized enterprises, including newly created ones, - with positive impact on job creation. CIP is being run by EIF until the end of 2013.

 Under this guarantee agreement, UniCredit Bank can provide development loans with simplified conditions to enterprises with insufficient collateral. EIF shall provide a guarantee for 50 per cent of the principal and interest on the loan. The agreement will be of particular importance for SMEs in the context of the current financial crisis.

 This guarantee provided under CIP represents no extra cost for clients, and neither does it require any extra administrative work, since the service is free of charge and automatic in the case of transactions meeting the criteria specified. This option is available to any small and medium enterprise with a maximum turnover of HUF 10 billion and a headcount which does not reach 250 persons at the time the loan agreement is signed. The term of the loan may vary from 18 months up to ten years. The guaranteed loan may be used for a number of purposes: either for financing investment for development purposes, i.e. purchase of tangible or intangible assets, or for acquiring current assets for a long term, necessary to carry out investment projects.

 UniCredit Bank Hungary Zrt. is the Hungarian member of the UniCredit Group and as such is part of the largest banking network in Central and Eastern Europe. UniCredit has a presence as a group in Hungary too: it offers a wide range of improved financial services for retail clients, sole traders, partnerships and institutional clients, from account maintenance to leasing, from asset management to investment banking services and from multi-purpose loan with various conditions to factoring services. In additions, the bank offers professional advice regarding how to apply for and how to use EU and national support.

 EIF's central mission is to support  Europe's small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance through venture capital and guarantees instruments.

 Further information:

Dr. Gábor Tamás managing director             tel.: 00-36-1-301-1350
UniCredit Bank Hungary Zrt.