The European Investment Fund (EIF) and Romania’s Raiffeisen Bank recently signed a COMSE agreement that will make $195.8 million available for loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country.

"Support for businesses and the creation of jobs is fundamental for growth in Europe,” EIF CEO Pier Luigi Gilibert said in a press release. “EIF is committed to supporting SMEs and is pleased to be signing, this EFSI SME agreement with Raiffeisen Bank in Romania. Raiffeisen Bank is well-placed to reach out and enhance access to finance for 2,000 companies across the country.”

Funding for the agreement was provided in part from the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSI), and the initiative is in line with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s Investment Plan for Europe, an effort to promote jobs and economic growth through easier investment access.

“This new partnership will facilitate access to finance of SMEs, under favorable terms – reduced collateral requirements and without any cost attached to the EIF guarantee, while further enhancing the fruitful long-standing cooperation between Raiffeisen Bank and the EIF,” Raiffeisen Bank President Steven van Groningen said. “The loans will cover both investment and working capital needs, in order for the SMEs to meet their operational needs, strengthen their competiveness and achieve their strategic objectives.”