16.09.2020

Another 130 million euros in support of Bulgarian business

The European Investment Fund (EIF) and Raiffeisenbank (Bulgaria) signed a new agreement worth 130 million euros under the European Union's (EU) COSME Program. It is part of the EU's policy to tackle the economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The COSME COVID-19 guarantee agreement is an instrument that will be available to Bulgarian small and medium-sized enterprises that need working capital to overcome the liquidity difficulties caused by the current economic environment.

Under the agreement, small and medium-sized enterprises will have access to working capital financing, thanks to an 80% guarantee on the amount of each new loan provided by the European Investment Fund. The maximum loan amount is up to EUR 150,000.

Earlier this year, the EIF and Raiffeisenbank signed an 18m-euro increase in the existing guarantee agreement under the EU's InnovFin Program for innovative companies, which also aims to support those companies in overcoming the crisis. Thus, the total amount for Bulgarian business to overcome the economic consequences of the COVID-19 crisis reached nearly 150 million euros.