NBG Group to join Istanbul Venture Capital Initiative

The NBG Group is to join the Istanbul Venture Capital Initiative (iVCi), Turkey's dedicated fund of funds and co-investment programme advised by the European Investment Fund (EIF). Istanbul Venture Capital Initiative, or "iVCi" as the programme is known, aims to serve as a catalyst for the development of the private equity industry in Turkey. NBG Group becomes the international institutional investor of reference in this programme.

Richard Pelly, EIF's Chief Executive, added: "we are delighted to have Greece's leading financial institution join iVCi. This brings a whole new dimension to the programme given the institutional investor expertise of NBG Group. iVCi is now a true Public Private Partnership as originally envisaged and we believe we will all benefit from NBG Group's involvement."

The first closing of iVCi took place in Luxembourg on 13 November 2007 at EUR 150m. The final closing of iVCi took place on 31st March 2009 at a total fund size of EUR 160m.

About EIF

EIF was established in 1994 and part of the EIB Group. EIF has a tripartite shareholding, which includes the European Investment Bank, the European Union represented by the European Commission, and a number of public and private European banks and financial institutions.
EIF central mission is to support Europe's SMEs by helping them to access finance.  EIF designs and develops equity (venture capital and private equity) and debt (guarantees) instruments which specifically target this market segment. In this role, EIF fosters EU objectives in support of innovation, regional development, entrepreneurship, growth, and employment.

For further information please visit www.eif.org

About NBG Group

The NBG Group is the oldest Greek commercial bank and provides a full range of financial products and services that meet the constantly changing needs of private individuals and corporate customers alike. With 579 branches in Greece, the NBG Group has the largest network for distribution of financial products and services in the country. Overseas the NBG Group is active in 12 countries and controls 7 banks and 65 companies. With equity capital of EUR 7 billion and a capital adequacy ratio of 10.9% (BIS ratio), the Group is a leading player in the domestic and regional markets. By the acquisition of United Bulgarian Bank in Bulgaria (2000), Stopanska Banka in FYROM (2000), Banca Romaneasca in Romania (2003), Finansbank in Turkey (2006) and Vojvodjanska Banka in Serbia (2006), NBG Group aims to be the leading financial institution in a market of 125 million.

For further information please visit www.nbg.gr

About iVCi

Established in November 2007, Istanbul Venture Capital Initiative (iVCi) is Turkey's first ever dedicated fund of funds and co-investment programme. Investors in iVCi are the Small and Medium Industry Development Organisation of Turkey (KOSGEB), the Technology Development Foundation of Turkey (TTGV), the Development Bank of Turkey (TKB), Garanti Bank, the European Investment Fund (EIF) and now NBG Group. EIF is the adviser to iVCi.
iVCi leverages on the experience of EIF, the European Union's specialised financial body for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and the risk capital arm of the European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group).

For further information please visit www.ivci.com.tr