EBRD lends 75 mln euro to Croatia's Splitska Banka

Structured in three tranches, the loan is designed to support Splitska Banka’s overall strategy for the next three years, the EBRD said in a statement.

The funding will be used mainly to increase lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), improve regional outreach and finance investments aimed at increasing competitiveness, in particular in the context of Croatia’s EU accession, the statement said.

Croatia will join the bloc in mid-2013.

Splitska Banka, owned by the Societe Generale banking group, is the sixth largest bank in Croatia, providing a wide range of corporate and retail banking services, with a particular focus on SMEs.

Since 2009, the EBRD has invested over 900 million euro in Croatia.

($=0.7638 euro)