Crédit Coopératif acquires from European Fund for Southeast Europe Convertible Debt of Kosovar microfinance institution KRK

Frankfurt am Main and Nanterre/France, July 16, 2008 – Crédit Coopératif, one of the leading co-operative banks in France, and the microfinance investment fund European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), announced today that Crédit Coopératif has entered into an agreement to purchase from EFSE an amount of EUR 300,000 in convertible debt. This debt will be fully convertible to equity of the Kosovar microfinance institution (MFI) Kreditimi Rural i Kosoves LLC (KRK).

KRK is one of the largest MFIs in Kosovo with a leading position in rural finance, providing around 5,700 loans totalling more than EUR 10 million (as of June 30, 2008) to farmers and rural micro-entrepreneurs.

"Crédit Coopératif's agreement to acquire convertible debt of KRK, held by EFSE, is proof of KRK's attractiveness as an investment. This is a direct result of the successful restructuring of KRK's liabilities, coordinated by EFSE, which in turn put KRK on the growth path," said Ms. Sylvia Wisniwski, Chief Operating Officer of EFSE. Further, "this transaction also confirms that an institutional investor like Crédit Coopératif is ready to enter into partnerships that, besides providing attractive returns, will have a considerable social impact."

The debt restructuring entailed the first-ever convertible debt issuance in Kosovo. As Ms. Wisniwski further explains, "we expect to close additional agreements in the coming months, as we are receiving a high number of requests from highly reputable investors who show readiness to invest in KRK by purchasing a portion of the existing convertible debt held by EFSE."

All convertible debt securities of EUR 1.8 million were originally held by EFSE, with the goal of placing them with new commercial investors at a later date. The transaction's significance "has still wider implications as it helps to put a region that is still perceived as high risk in institutional capital markets, on the map of institutional investors, with substantial benefits for the development of the financial sector", Ms. Wisniwski further comments. Additionally, she explains that "ultimately, this will expand the financial options available to the micro and small enterprise segments which are the backbone of the Kosovar economy."

About the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE):
With an outstanding investment portfolio of EUR 414 million (as of March 31, 2008) invested in partner lending institutions (PLIs) across Southeast Europe, EFSE is aimed at fostering economic development and prosperity in Southeast Europe. The Fund offers long-term funding instruments to local financial institutions in the region for on-lending to micro and small enterprises (MSEs) as well as to low-income private households for housing purposes. Complementing the Fund's financial assistance, the EFSE Development Facility organises and co-finances technical assistance and training for capacity building of PLIs. EFSE is a public-private partnership. Its capital base is jointly constituted by donors, development finance institutions and private institutional investors. KfW is the Initiator and Promoter of the Fund. The Fund Manager is Oppenheim Asset Management Services. Frankfurt School of Finance & Management acts as advisor and supports the fund management. The Fund operates in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania, Serbia, Kosovo, Montenegro, Moldova, FYR Macedonia, Albania and Bulgaria, and is expected to start operations in Ukraine within the coming months.

EFSE's outstanding investment portfolio in Kosovo, invested in seven PLIs, amounted to around EUR 42 million, as of March 31, 2008. The number of EFSE-refinanced loans to local MSEs and low-income private households stood at more than 15,500.

For more information, please visit www.efse.lu

About Crédit Coopératif:
Owned by its clients, Crédit Coopératif is a co-operative bank which has been an active banker of the social economy for more than one hundred years. Crédit Coopératif (total assets over EUR 11 billion) offers a wide range of banking products and services to organisations such as cooperatives, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) / smallmedium industries (SMIs), NGOs engaged in international solidarity, and other organisations with activities in health, social care, culture and social housing. The bank also has a private client side serviced through an extensive range of products and services, such as ethical and solidarity based funds. Crédit Coopératif has been a pioneer in France, creating in the 1980's the first solidarity sharing investment fund. The bank is one of the parent companies of Groupe Banque Populaire, one of the largest bank groups in France.

Since 2004, Crédit Coopératif has invested in several specialised investment funds in microfinance and/or SME financing. The bank has played both a private investor and promoter role in these funds: Global Microfinance Facility, EFSE, CoopEst (an investment company created to support social economy in Central and Eastern Europe, by investing in financial intermediaries such as banks, credit unions, savings cooperatives and microfinance institutions), SEFEA (Société Européenne de Finance Ethique et Alternative) in Italy, and Sicoop (Sociedad de Inversion Coopérativa) in Spain.

www.credit-cooperatif.coop

Media contacts

EFSE Mr. Samir Djikić, Communications Manager Tel: +49 (0)69 9778 7650-26 E-mail: press@efse.lu

Oesterreichische Kontrollbank Group Mr. Peter Gumpinger, Public Relations Tel: +43 15 31 27 24 41 E-mail: peter.gumpinger@oekb.at