November 16 (SeeNews) - The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering providing a senior loan of 20 million euro ($29.9 million) to the Bulgarian banking unit of German-based Allianz Group for onlending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), the EBRD said.
The proceeds of the loan will be used to provide short, medium and long-term financing to Bulgarian SME companies, the EBRD said in a statement late on Friday.
The EBRD's loan facility also aims to improve Allianz Bank Bulgaria's reach of SME funding, especially given limited availability for medium and long-term financing under the current financial crisis.
Allianz Bank Bulgaria (http://bank.allianz.bg), 66%-owned by Allianz Group, was the 12th largest Bulgarian bank in terms of assets as of September. It had 110 branches countrywide.
($ = 0.6681 euro)