MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) Loans $13m to Newly Launched Sberbank BH of Bosnia and Herzegovina for Housing, Micro- and Small Enterprise (MSE)

The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a Luxembourg-based investment company, and Sberbank BH, the Bosnia and Herzegovina branch of government-owned Sberbank of Russia, recently signed a EUR 10 million (USD 13.3 million) loan agreement. Sberbank will use EUR 3 million (USD 3.99 million) of the commitment to launch a housing loan program and the remaining EUR 7 million (USD 9.32 million) for on-lending to micro- and small enterprises (MSEs). Further information on the loan agreement has not been released.

Sberbank BH was opened in 2013, and financial information on the firm is unavailable. As of 2012, Sberbank of Russia reported total assets of RUB 15.1 trillion (USD 469.7 billion), gross loan portfolio of RUB 5.2 trillion (USD 161.8 billion), deposits of RUB 4.1 trillion (USD 127.6 billion), return on assets of 2.7 percent and return on equity of 24.2 percent. As of March 2012, EFSE has an outstanding investment portfolio of EUR 723 million (USD 885 million).

By Charlotte Newman, Research Associate

About Sberbank of Russia
Sberbank of Russia is a government-owned commercial bank based in Moscow. Sberbank serves 101 million clients in Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, Russia, Turkey and Ukraine. As of 2012, Sberbank reported total assets of RUB 15.1 trillion (USD 469.7 billion), gross loan portfolio of RUB 5.2 trillion (USD 161.8 billion), deposits of RUB 4.1 trillion (USD 127.6 billion), return on assets of 2.7 percent and return on equity of 24.2 percent.

About European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE)
Established in 2005, the European Fund for Southeast Europe aims to foster economic development in southeastern Europe and parts of Central Asia by supporting the provision of financial services to low-income households and micro- and small enterprises via local financial institutions. EFSE was initiated by KfW Entwicklungsbank, a German development bank, with support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ in German) and the European Commission. EFSE is privately managed, with Oppenheim Asset Management Services of Luxembourg acting as fund manager and Finance in Motion GmbH of Germany acting as fund advisor. As of March 2012, EFSE has an outstanding investment portfolio of EUR 723 million (USD 885 million). As of 2012, EFSE holds a label from LuxFLAG, an organization that certifies that microfinance investment vehicles actually invest in the microfinance sector.

Sources and Additional Resources:

EFSE Press Release: “EFSE Issues EUR 10 million Senior Loan to Sberbank BH d.d. Sarajevo,” http://www.efse.lu/Details—2013-06-06-EFSE-issues-EUR-10-million-senior-loan-to-Sberbank-BH-d-d–Sarajevo——_nav._siteid.134_entryid.477_dir._likecms.html

MicroCapital.org story, June 9, 2013, “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Loans $70m to SB Sberbank of Kazakhstan to Support Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-ifc-loans-70m-to-sb-sberbank-of-kazakhstan-to-support-small-medium-sized-enterprises-smes/

MicroCapital.org story, June 11, 2013, “MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Considers $33m Loans to European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) for Micro-, Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises,” https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-european-bank-for-reconstruction-and-development-ebrd-considers-33m-loan-to-european-fund-for-southeast-europe-efse-for-micro-small-medium-sized-enterprises/

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Sberbank of Russia
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Sberbank+of+Russia

MicroCapital Universe Profile: European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE)
http://microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=European+Fund+for+Southeast+Europe+%28EFSE%29

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