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- EBRD extends new unfunded portfolio risk-sharing facility to Credit Agricole Ukraine
- Facility to unlock €150 million of new financing for Ukrainian businesses
- Lending to drive business resilience and energy investments, with EU support for competitiveness upgrades
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is extending a new portfolio risk-sharing facility to Credit Agricole Ukraine to enable €150 million in new lending to Ukrainian borrowers amid Russia’s ongoing war on the country.
The EBRD’s unfunded guarantee will partially cover Credit Agricole’s credit risk on newly issued subloans, enhancing its capacity to provide much-needed funding to private businesses amid the challenging war environment.
Backed by the EBRD’s guarantee, Credit Agricole will lend a total of €150 million to businesses operating in critical industries as well as micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and mid-cap companies investing in energy generation, energy storage and energy efficiency projects.
This is the third portfolio risk-sharing facility that the EBRD has provided to Credit Agricole Ukraine since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Credit Agricole will lend €30 million – or 20 per cent of the subloans covered by the EBRD guarantee – to MSMEs for long-term investments in EU-compliant and green technologies, thereby improving their competitiveness on domestic and foreign markets.
Eligible sub-borrowers will also receive European Union (EU)-funded technical assistance and investment incentives such as grants on completion of their investment projects under the bloc’s EU4Business initiative. Higher levels of incentives will be provided for businesses and households most affected by the war (such as those experiencing asset destruction, loss or relocation), as well as for sub-borrowers, facilitating the reintegration into the workforce of war veterans, people living with disabilities, internally displaced persons and/or those located in territories most acutely affected by the war.
The EBRD has already allocated €75.4 million of EU grant support to Ukrainian MSMEs under the EU4Business-EBRD Credit Line, of which €2.25 million has been issued to projects through Credit Agricole.
Overall, the EBRD has enabled close to €3.29 billion of finance for Ukrainian borrowers through 40 similar facilities with 12 partner financial institutions since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The EBRD facilities will be backed by partial first-loss risk cover from France and the EU under its Ukraine Investment Framework.
Credit Agricole Ukraine is part of the Credit Agricole Group (France). Since 2023 Credit Agricole Ukraine has been included in the National Bank of Ukraine’s list of systemically important banks, indicating the significance of Credit Agricole in the Ukrainian economy.
The EBRD is Ukraine’s largest institutional lender and has increased its lending to the country markedly in recent years, making more than €8.5 billion available since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion. The Bank has also secured agreement from its shareholders for a capital increase of €4 billion in order to continue lending at this level during wartime, and will increase its lending further when the time comes for reconstruction.