BUCHAREST (Romania), December 21 (SeeNews) -The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) said on Friday has provided a local currency loan equivalent to 30 million euro ($34.4 million) to Alpha Bank Romania to support the bank’s efforts in financing micro and small-sized enterprises (MSEs).
"When entrepreneurs can access responsible financing suited to their business needs, the whole economy benefits. By providing dedicated MSE financing in local currency, EFSE and Alpha Bank are helping safeguard this key sector from exchange rate risks and secure their sustainable growth," EFSE board chairman Christoph Tiskens said in a statement.
The investment aims to promote entrepreneurship in the country by strengthening the bank’s capacity to provide long-term financing to MSEs in local currency.
"Alpha Bank is committed to MSE financing, as we recognize the key contributions smaller businesses make to economic growth and job creation in the country. The partnership with EFSE is in line with the bank’s continued support of developing the MSE segment of the market by offering long-term financing products and its strategy to diversify further its funding sources," Alpha Bank Romania's executive vice president, Periklis Voulgaris, said.
EFSE was initiated by German development bank KfW with the financial support of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Commission. It aims to foster economic development and prosperity in Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia, Kosovo, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine and Turkey.
Alpha Bank Romania is part of Greece-based Alpha Bank Group and was established in 1994 as the first international bank to enter the Romanian market.
The branch network consists of 130 branches throughout the country. Alpha Bank Romania is rated Ba3 with a positive outlook by Moody’s.
($ = 0.8715 euro)
Banca Transilvania SA is among the biggest banks in SEE. You can download our SEE Top 100 ranking
here or subscribe to our free Top 100 newsletter
here