OTP Bank Romania doubles loans granted in state-backed SME financing scheme

OTP Bank Romania, the local subsidiary of Hungarian group OTP, announced that it would double the budget allotted to the IMM Invest program.

Under this program, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Romania can get state-guaranteed loans for working capital and investments.

The National Credit Guarantee Fund for Small and Medium Enterprises (FNGCIMM), which manages the scheme, has approved the doubling of the guarantees threshold allotted to OTP Bank after the lender exhausted its initial allotment. Within three months since the program was launched, OTP Bank Romania extended RON 340 mln (EUR 70 mln) worth of loans to entrepreneurs in the sectors of services, trade, production, transport, and construction.

The European Commission (EC) has already approved the increase in this program's budget from RON 15 billion to RON 20 billion (EUR 4 bln).

"I trusted from the very beginning that the IMM Invest program could be the driving force needed to relaunch the Romanian economy and the oxygen that small and medium-sized companies in difficulty need. The fact that we have already reached the limit initially demonstrates the involvement of my colleagues in supporting the business environment, but also entrepreneurs' great need for state support. By doubling the budget, we continue our mission of standing by our partners," said Roxana Hidan, Deputy CEO of the Retail Division, within OTP Bank Romania.

(Photo source: the company)