Croat HBOR to finance business with 100 mln EUR loan
December 2, 2008
Croatia's Bank for Reconstruction and Development (HBOR) said on Monday it had signed an agreement with local banks on a syndicated loan worth 100 million euros, aimed at boosting local businesses amidst the global crisis.
'Those 100 million euros ($126.7 million) will be used to extend loans (to local businesses). This is the first concrete measure to counter the current economic difficulties caused by the global financial situation,' HBOR said in a statement.
It provided no details on the conditions of the loan, which will be used to boost small- and medium-sized companies and local exporters.
The lead arranger is Privredna Banka Zagreb, majority owned by Italy's Intesa Sanpaolo. The other banks include Splitska Banka, owned by France's Societe Generale, and Austria's Erste Bank, Hypo Alpe-Adria-Bank and Raiffeisenbank.
HBOR is a state-owned bank specifically tasked with financing the development of Croatia's economy and boosting exports through loans provided at favourable interest rates.
It gave up issuing a Eurobond in the last quarter of this year following worsening conditions on the global financial markets.
Due to the central bank's tight monetary policy in recent years, which created ample liquidity reserves, Croatia managed to avoid the initial onslaught of the global financial crisis.
Source: http://www.forbes.com/afxnewslimited/feeds