EIF signs an agreement for a EUR 10m JEREMIE Holding Fund to support businesses in Malta

The EIF's Chief Executive, Mr Richard Pelly, together with the Maltese Minister of Finance, Mr Tonio Fenech today signed a JEREMIE funding agreement aimed at supporting small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in Malta.

The Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises initiative, known as JEREMIE, a joint initiative of the European Commission and the European Investment Fund, aims to facilitate access to finance for SMEs. The EUR 10m Holding Fund in Malta adds to the EUR 1 billion euros the EIF is managing through JEREMIE holding funds across the European Union using structural funds to bring a new sustainable approach to SME financing. EIF’s Chief Executive Richard Pelly said “We are pleased to be helping to enhance access to finance for small and medium sized businesses. This Funding Agreement amounting to EUR 10 million will be mobilised through banks primarily to provide small loans and microfinance to SMEs in Malta. We are pleased to have started this fruitful partnership with the Maltese government for the benefit of local businesses.”

The Maltese Minister of Finance, the Economy and Investment, Tonio Fenech, said “We are delighted to be working with the European Investment Fund and to benefit from their expertise and market experience in SME finance. This know-how combined with our local knowledge will help to bring lasting benefits to the financial sector and to SMEs in Malta.”

Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regional Policy added: "I am pleased to see that Malta uses the possibilities offered by the EU Cohesion Policy. The JEREMIE instrument is a form of financing which is more sustainable over the long-term compared to one-off grants. It will help Maltese enterprises, at times hampered by their peripheral location, to further develop".

About JEREMIE

JEREMIE (Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises) is a joint initiative launched by the European Commission (DG Regional Policy) and the European Investment Bank group to improve access to finance for SMEs in the EU within the structural funds framework for the period 2007 - 2013. JEREMIE enables the EU member states and regions to put money from the structural funds, co-financed by national resources, into holding funds that can indirectly finance SMEs in a flexible and innovative way. Since the instruments are designed on a repayable basis, funding returned will be reinvested and hence more SMEs will benefit from the EU resources.

The new initiative aims at developing and fostering the role of entrepreneurship within the EU in order to meet the objectives of the Lisbon agenda and to help structural funds deliver greater benefits to the market. JEREMIE holding fund agreements signed so far in member states and regions provide for some EUR 3.2 bln from structural funds operational programmes to be invested into repayable instruments for SMEs, one third of this amount is managed by EIF through 10 holding fund agreements and the rest by national or regional financial institutions.

EIF has to date signed 7 national (Greece, Romania, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania, Cyprus and Bulgaria) and 3 regional (in France – Languedoc-Roussillon, and Italy – Campania and Sicily) Holding Fund Agreements.

In Malta the JEREMIE Holding Fund is financed from EU Structural Funds under the Operational Programme I (Cohesion Policy 2007-2013) “Investing in Competitiveness for in a better quality of life” for the 2007-2013 programming period.

About EIF

EIF's central mission is to support Europe's small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) by helping them to access finance. EIF designs and develops venture capital and guarantees instruments which specifically target this market segment. In this role, EIF fosters EU objectives in support of innovation, research and development, entrepreneurship, growth, and employment.

The EIF total net commitments to private equity funds amounted to over EUR 3.7bn at end 2009. With investments in over 300 funds, the EIF is a leading player in European venture due to the scale and the scope of its investments, especially in high-tech and early-stage segments. The EIF commitment in guarantees totaled over EUR 13.6bn in over 160 operations, positioning it as a major European SME guarantees actor and a leading micro-finance guarantor.

For further information, please contact David Yormesor, d.yormesor@eif.org