EIB Group and BBVA to make €960 million available to Spanish SMEs

• The EIB Group (EIB and EIF) is set to grant a guarantee of up to €120 million to BBVA, enabling the Spanish bank to channel more than €960 million into the real economy.
• The operation aims to secure working capital and liquidity needs, as well as to facilitate access to finance for eligible companies on favourable terms.
• The guarantee covers the first loss piece in a synthetic securitisation structure under the European Guarantee Fund.

The European Investment Bank Group (EIB and EIF) and BBVA are joining forces once again to support working capital and liquidity needs, as well as to cover the investment constraints of Spanish small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the COVID-19 crisis. To this end, the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF) will guarantee a junior tranche of a €120 million synthetic securitisation of an SME and small mid-cap loan portfolio originated by BBVA, enabling the Basque bank to provide more than €960 million of financing to support SME investments.

The EIB Group guarantee will unlock additional capital to be used by BBVA to provide new loans to SMEs for a multiple of the guarantee amount, thereby having a major impact. This agreement will enable BBVA to expand its lending capacity and grant €960 million in extra financing at a critical time for the Spanish economy.

The operation covers the first loss piece of a synthetic securitisation structure under the European Guarantee Fund, approved by the European Council as part of the European Union's €540 billion package of measures to address the economic impact of COVID-19.

The EIB and BBVA have been working together for more than 30 years. Over this period, the two institutions have signed more than 140 operations in 17 countries, providing €4.5 billion of direct financing to SMEs and mid-caps.

EIB Vice-President Ricardo Mourinho Félix said: “BBVA has been a key counterpart of the EIB Group for 30 years. Together, we continue to promote new initiatives on the Spanish market to meet EU policy objectives, supporting the financing needs of SMEs, the backbone of the European economy.”

EIF Chief Executive Alain Godard added: “We are pleased to have concluded one of the first securitisation transactions under the European Guarantee Fund with BBVA. This shows that BBVA and the EIB Group are committed to helping SMEs in Spain, particularly in difficult times such as these.”

BBVA CEO Onur Genç said: “The self-employed and SMEs play a key role in the Spanish economy. Following this new agreement with the EIB, we will continue to help them tackle their projects, above all in the areas of sustainability and digitalisation, thereby supporting the recovery.”

Background information:

The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy objectives.

The European Investment Fund (EIF) is part of the European Investment Bank Group. The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantee and micro-finance instruments that specifically target this market segment. The EIF is also active in supporting climate and infrastructure fund investments with a strong focus on climate action and environmental sustainability. Through its activities, the EIF promotes EU objectives in support of countering climate change as well as fostering innovation, research and development, entrepreneurship, growth and employment.

The European Guarantee Fund (EGF) was set up by the EIB Group with contributions from Spain and other EU Member States to shield companies suffering from the COVID-19 crisis. Using nearly €25 billion in guarantees, the EGF allows the EIB and the EIF to quickly make loans, guarantees, asset-backed securities, equity and other financial instruments available to mostly small and medium-sized enterprises and mid-caps. The EGF is part of the European Union’s recovery package aiming to provide a total of €540 billion to boost the parts of the EU economy that have been hit the worst.

BBVA is a customer-centric global financial services group founded in 1857. The group has a solid leading position in Spain, is the largest financial institution in Mexico and has leading franchises in South America. It is also the leading shareholder in Turkey’s Garanti BBVA and has an important investment, transactional and capital markets banking business in the United States. Its purpose is to bring the age of opportunities to everyone, based on customers’ real needs: provide the best solutions, helping them make the best financial decisions, through an easy and convenient experience. The institution rests in solid values: the customer comes first, we think big and we are one team. Its responsible banking model aspires to achieve a more inclusive and sustainable society.

This article was first published on 4 January by EIB