EFSE - A development finance initiative

EFSE and Finansbank expand their cooperation to provide financing for rural clients and SMEs in Turkey

EUR 15 million loan to finance close to 2,000 loans

The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) and Finansbank A.Ş., Turkey (Finansbank) are expanding their support for micro and small enterprises (MSEs) as well as for rural clients in Turkey through an additional EUR 15 million senior loan. Half of the loan provided by the EFSE to Finansbank will be earmarked for onlending to the “Priority Development Regions” of Turkey.

This new loan will serve to finance nearly 2,000 new loans. In addition, Finansbank and the EFSE Development Facility will be organising staff trainings on agricultural lending as well as in the “Future Bosses” programme for young entrepreneurs. Finansbank is the sixth largest private bank in Turkey in terms of assets and has been an EFSE partner lending institution since 2014.

“The effectiveness with which Finansbank has on-lent the EFSE’s first credit facility in 2014 to the Fund’s final beneficiaries of micro and small enterprises and low-income households has shown the dedication of Finansbank to the EFSE’s target group,” says Monika Beck, Chairperson of the Board of EFSE. “With small and medium enterprises accounting for more than 70% of all workplaces in Turkey, this new loan signifies important financial support to the rural areas in Turkey.”

Metin Karabiber, Assistant General Manager for SME and Agricultural Banking at Finansbank: “This facility is our second loan from the EFSE for financing SMEs. The loan will further enhance our ability to financially support Turkey's fast-growing and very promising micro and small enterprises. The EFSE not only financially supports our strategy, but also contributes to staff training on agri-lending and sponsors our ‘Future Bosses’ programme which reaches out to young entrepreneurs. We are delighted with our cooperation with the EFSE and look forward to expanding it in many more areas.”

About the European Fund for Southeast Europe
The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) was initiated by KfW 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 and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo, Georgia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine and Turkey. As access to finance is a key success factor in developing the micro, small and medium enterprise segments, the EFSE focuses on assisting local financial sectors in strengthening their ability to ensure adequate and sustainable financing. The funding the EFSE provides as long-term finance primarily for micro and small enterprises (MSEs) – but also for private households in the form of home improvement loans – is channelled to these loan customers through local partner lending institutions. Supporting the EFSE’s investment activities is the EFSE Development Facility, which provides partner lending institutions with technical assistance, consulting and training services to build operational capacities and professional management.

Initiated by KfW Development Bank (KfW) on 15 December 2005 from four multi-donor programs under its management, the EFSE is the first public-private partnership of its kind and the first privately managed fund in development finance to leverage private funding for MSE finance in the target region. Capital is provided by donor agencies, international financial institutions and private institutional investors, including the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the European Commission (EC), the Government of Albania, Small and Medium Business Credit Support CJSC (SMBCS), a subsidiary of the Central Bank of Armenia, the Development Bank of Austria (Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank - OeEB), the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), the Danish International Development Agency (Danida), KfW as Lead Investor, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Netherlands Finance Company (FMO), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), the European Investment Bank (EIB), Sal. Oppenheim and Deutsche Bank.

Oppenheim Asset Management Services S.à r.l., Luxembourg, and Finance in Motion GmbH, Germany, are, respectively, the EFSE’s Fund Manager and Fund Advisor.

For more information about the European Fund for Southeast Europe, please visit: www.efse.lu

About Finansbank
Finansbank has been operating continuously for 28 years since its inception on October 26th 1987, steadfast in its commitment to offer more than traditional banking services to its customers and become the Financier of Turkey. Focused on responding to Turkey's growing financial needs as the Financer of Turkey, Finansbank continues to expand its stellar list of accomplishments – as has always been the case – with its customer-oriented strategies and passionate and vigorous employees who are experts in their field and committed to their values.

Media contact EFSE
Merle Römer
Manager Communications and Events
e-mail: press@efse.lu
Tel: +49 (0)69 271 035-171

Media contact Finansbank
Didem Argüden
Public Relations
e-mail: didem.arguden@finanasbank.com.tr
Tel: +90 212 318 5651

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