Pier Luigi Gilibert, Executive Manager at EIF - EUR 270 m for regional innovative companies

Source: eKapija Thursday, 19.05.2016. 08:32
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Pier Luigi GilibertPier Luigi Gilibert
The European Investment Fund (EIF) andthe ProCredit group signed a guarantee agreement to provide loans for financing Innovative Small and Medium sizedEnterprises (SMEs) and small mid-caps on May 9, 2016, in Thessalonikki, Greece,via InnovFin - the EU financial fund for innovators, in the total amount of 20million EUR. This amount will be available for Greek SMEs and smallmid-caps financed within the next twoyears.

What seems to be an advantage for thebank is the possibility of using the guarantee provided by the EIF, whichenables it to offer to innovative enterprises additional credit underfavourable conditions.

This is the second agreement signedbetween these two institutions with the support of the InnovFin facility inEurope. The first one, signed on financing small and medium enterprises inseven countries in the South-East Europe region, among which is Serbia as well,was signed at the beginning of this year.

Pier Luigi Gilibert, the EIF ExecutiveDirector, says in the conversation with eKapija, that he is satisfied withanother InnovFin SME guarantee agreement having been signed, all for thebenefit of innovative enterprises.

eKapija: To which extent are theentrepreneurs interested in the countries in which the InnovFin guaranteeagreements have been signed and the funds are available, how much funds have sofar been approved?

- The agreement by which the ProCreditgroup has been enabled to finance the innovational enterprises out of the totalbudget in the amount of 250 million EUR, through ProCredit banks in Albania,Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Macedonia, Moldova, Romania and Serbia wassigned in January and has been lately expanded on Greece. It is still early totalk about the extent to which small and medium enterprises are interested inthis, since the agreement is still relatively new, but, judging by theconversation with the partners in the ProCredit banks, we believe that there issufficient level of interest shown by the companies for all funds to beapproved within the next two years.

ekapija: Why have you decided to deal withfinancing innovative enterprises?

- The reason why this programme is sointeresting for enterprises throughout Europe is the fact that small and mediumenterprises are complicated clients for banks and, unless they have additionalincentive, the banks are in no position to offer crediting to small and mediumenterprises under favourable conditions. According to the InnovFin SMEguarantee agreement, EIF guarantees to all financial intermediaries the paybackof the corresponding part of the loan incase of loss, so the bank is enabled to offer additional credit to innovationalenterprises by reducing the request for collaterals without tranferring theincreased risk costs onto a client.

eKapija: Are, and if yes to which extent,companies from this region ready to invest into new, innovative projects,bearing in mind the fact that the crisis is still on and that the majority ofthem take care of their own everyday business activities prior to everythingelse?

- Small and medium enterprisesthroughout Europe which are dedicated to innovations endure the crisisrelatively well, and substantially easier when compared to traditionalcompanies, which are less competitive, and thus it is more difficult for themto fight for their position on the market.

(Photo: Gajus/shutterstock.com)
eKapija: The lack of financial sources isbeing mentioned as the main obstacle to the development of SMEs in this part ofEurope. Are the small and medium enterprises aware of alternative sources offinancing?

- This sort of financing is importantfor enhancing small and medium entrepreneurship and there are substantialalternative sources for financing on the market, such as venture capital funds,to start with. The problem is that some of them are new and it takes time for themto be known and to become close to the SME sector.

eKapija: The significance of micro-financinghas lately been particularly pointed out, what would you set apart as its mostsignificant advantage?

- The key advantage of this source offinancing is not only the ensuring of funds, but in the overall package whichfollows. Micro- financing envelops offer as well as technical support,mentoring and training, especially in the areas such as accounting andfinances, so in that way the enterprises get not only financial help but gothrough a learning process of a sort.

eKapija: Which models of entrepreneurshipare the most necessary nowadays and in which areas of economy?

- I think that actually all kinds ofinnovative entrepreneurships are those which have most chances to succeed onthe market and from the activities of which the society in its entirety canbenefit the most.

Ivana Bezarevic

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