MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) Loans $34m to Banca Intesa Beograd of Serbia for Micro-and Small Enterprises

The Luxembourg-registered European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) recently reported to MicroCapital that it has signed an agreement to loan EUR 25 million (USD 34 million) to Banca Intesa Beograd, a Serbian commercial bank, to boost the availability of financing to micro– and small enterprises (MSEs), including rural entrepreneurs and small agriculture producers in Serbia. The proceeds of the loan will be used to finance investments and working capital needs with longer term loans of up to EUR 100,000 (USD 135,000).

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 June 30, 2011, EFSE has an outstanding investment portfolio of EUR 676 million (USD 982 million).

Banca Intesa Beograd, a subsidiary of Italy-based Intesa Sanpaolo, is a commercial bank that services about 1.5 million corporate and retail customers, has EUR 3.49 billion (USD 4.7 billion) in total assets and has EUR 2.21 billion (USD 3 billion) in total deposits.

By Ariana Malushi, Research Associate

About the 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 June 30, 2011, EFSE has an outstanding investment portfolio of EUR 676 million (USD 982 million). LuxFLAG, an organization that certifies that microfinance investment vehicles actually invest in the microfinance sector, renewed EFSE’s label as of 2011.

About Banca Intesa Beograd: Banca Intensa Beograd, a subsidiary of Intesa Sanpaolo is a commercial bank that services about 1.5 million corporate and retail customers, has EUR 3.49 billion (USD 4.7 billion) in total assets and has EUR 2.21 billion (USD 3 billion) in total deposits. It operates 200 branch offices in 120 cities in Serbia with a professional staff of 3,000.

Sources and Additional Resources:

European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) Press Release: “EFSE and Banca Intesa Beograd boost financing to micro and small enterprises in Serbia”, http://efse.lu/Press-releases—Details—2011-11-21-EFSE-and-Banca-Intesa-Beograd-boost-financing-to-micro-and-small-enterprises-in-Serbia——_nav.52_siteid.134_entryid.385_dir._likecms.html

MicroCapital.org Story, July 7, 2011 :MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) Loans $29m to Raiffeisen Bank Bosnia and Herzegovina https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-european-fund-for-southeast-europe-efse-loans-29m-to-raiffeisen-bank-bosnia-and-herzegovina/

MicroCapital.org Story, November 16, 2011: MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe Lends $20m to ProCredit Bank Georgia for Microfinance, SMEs
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-european-fund-for-southeast-europe-lends-20m-to-procredit-bank-georgia-for-microfinance-smes/

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

MicroCapital Universe Profile,  Banca Intesa Beograd https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Banca+Intesa+Beograd

Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/

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