EU and EIB To Support Small Business in Georgia with 30 Million EUR Loan

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has lent 30 million EUR to TBC Bank, the largest bank in Georgia, to improve access to financing options for Georgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). SMEs make up more than 90% of Georgian businesses and are thus a critical component of economic growth and development. The loan is part of the EU4Business initiative, which was designed to support SMEs in the six Eastern Partnership countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine). Funding within the scope of the project is expected to benefit approximately 600 Georgian SMEs.

EIB Vice-President Vazil Hudák commented that his organization’s support with help Georgian SMEs “improve their access to longer term finance, which is a prerequisite for their growth and competitiveness…We hope this will promote job creation and foster the general development of Georgia’s economy.”

It is the EIB’s fourth loan with TBC Bank since 2012, totaling 85 million EUR. TBC CEO Vakhtang Butskhrikidze said, “We are proud to have built such a successful relationship with the EIB, TBC Bank’s long-standing partner…This facility will help TBC Bank to further strengthen its leading position in the Georgian small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) segment.”

EIB and TBC Bank have joined forces with the European Union to strengthen economic development in Georgia by providing financial and technical support targeted at SMEs. EIB has also loaned significant sums to other countries that have signed partnership agreements with the EU – Moldova and Ukraine.

Click here for more information about EIB and EU4Business.

By Samantha Guthrie

Photo: European Union