The EBRD will lend maib 50 million euros to strengthen its funding base and support small and medium-sized businesses in Moldova.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD ) said in a statement that it will provide a loan to maib to strengthen the Moldovan bank’s funding base in the difficult economic conditions caused by the war in Ukraine and enable it to continue supporting the Moldovan economy, with a focus on private business. The 50 million euros financing package was signed at the EBRD's annual meeting in Marrakech by Chief Executive Officer of maib, Giorgi Shagidze, and the EBRD’s Managing Director for Financial Institutions, Francis Malige, and consists of two elements. Specifically, 15 million euros will go towards expanding maib's participation in the EU4Business-EBRD line of credit aimed at financing investments by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in technology modernization, making them more competitive and capable of exporting their products. The EU will complement EBRD financing with grants and free technical assistance to borrowers under its EU4Business initiative. The loan will contribute to the goals of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) Economic and Investment Plan, which include supporting 50,000 small and medium-sized enterprises in Moldova. maib, which was the lead implementer of this program, previously provided a 30 million euros loan, supporting about 50 SME clients. The remaining 35 million euros relates to the EBRD's 2 billion euros Resilience and Livelihoods program, promised by the EBRD to support companies and countries directly or indirectly affected by the war in Ukraine. The financing allocated by the EBRD is fully in line with maib's strategy and course of development in the area of SME lending. In 2021, maib increased SME lending by 35%, while strengthening its leading position in SME lending by 4 p.p. As of the end of 2021, maib's market share in SME lending in Moldova was 26.3%. "We are pleased to support our long-standing client, maib, to reinforce its funding base in the challenging economic environment caused by the war on Ukraine and enable it to expand lending to Moldova’s private businesses," said Francis Malige, EBRD’s Managing Director for Financial Institutions. "This is a remarkable contribution to maib’s strategy to encourage the small business in Moldova. This loan will help us assist the businesses cover their financing needs in light of the geopolitical events. I would like to express my gratitude to EBRD and the EU for their partnership with maib and continuous support for the Moldovan economy. We are very pleased and grateful to be able to help our clients making loans more accessible to enable their growth," said Chief Executive Officer of maib, Giorgi Shagidze. maib is Moldova's largest bank, accounting for 31.4% of banking sector assets and 34.9% of loans as of December 31, 2021. Since 2018, maib's largest shareholder is a consortium that includes the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Invalda INVL, an asset management group in the Baltics, and Horizon Capital, a private investment fund focused on emerging markets in Europe. // 12.05.2022 – InfoMarket
