EBRD lends €150 million to Pekao Leasing

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is extending a €150 million loan to Pekao Leasing, a Polish leasing company. Pekao Leasing will use the EBRD’s investment to finance leases for Polish micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) adversely affected by the economic disruptions resulting from the war in neighbouring Ukraine.

At least 60 per cent of the proceeds from the loan will fund leases for green equipment, in line with the EBRD’s Green Economy Transition (GET) approach.

This will include investments in energy, resource and water efficiency, renewable energy, and waste minimisation, which support Polish businesses in scaling up the use of efficient technologies, and help Poland to progress towards a green economy.  

Private businesses in Poland have been negatively affected by supply chain disruptions, high inflation and energy prices, and reduced product imports and exports as a result of Russia’s war on Ukraine. With SMEs accounting for more than 66 per cent of Poland’s employment, it is critical to help them withstand the economic consequences of the war and ensure they are able to remain operational.

At the same time, access to local debt capital markets remains limited, inhibiting companies’ ability to raise funding. Additional external funding such as the EBRD’s loan will support Pekao Leasing in diversifying its funding base and sustain capacity to continue on-lending to lessors.

With this investment, the EBRD is supporting both a strong player that can catalyse green economy investments, and the resilience of businesses affected by war.

Elisabetta Falcetti, EBRD Regional Director for Poland and the Baltic States, said: “We are pleased to partner with Pekao Leasing on a project that ticks so many boxes: strengthening the lending ability of a key player on the Polish market, providing support for businesses affected by the war on Ukraine, and promoting green investments. We look forward to working together to expand financing solutions in Poland which not only help businesses become more efficient, but also have very clear environmental benefits that enable Poland to transition to a green economy. This is one of our key focuses in the country.” 

Jerzy Kwieciński, Vice-President of Bank Pekao responsible for the Corporate Banking, Markets and Investment Banking Division, said: “As the Pekao Group, we are the leader in financing enterprises in Poland and every day we try to offer entrepreneurs the best possible conditions for raising capital. We also have the ambition to be a leading bank when it comes to financing the green transformation of the Polish economy. The EBRD has been an important partner for us for a long time, having participated in debt issues carried out by Bank Pekao in 2018, 2019 and 2023. Thanks to the new agreement, we are now entering a very important, new area of cooperation with our leasing subsidiary in the area of green transformation."

Pekao Leasing is the fifth largest leasing company in Poland, 100 per cent owned by Bank Pekao S.A, an established partner of the EBRD.   

Bank Pekao’s participation in the agreement with the EBRD is in line with the implementation of Bank Pekao’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) strategy for 2021-24. Bank Pekao’s goal is to provide financing for new sustainable projects totaling at least PLN 30 billion between 2021 and 2024, of which at least PLN 8 billion (€X) is targeted at green and social projects. PLN 22 billion is targeted at supporting the issue of ESG bonds of Bank Pekao’s clients. The share of green financing, including projects such as wind farms, photovoltaic installations, low-emission transport or ecological construction, will increase to more than 4 per cent of Bank Pekao’s balance sheet portfolio.

Promoting the low-carbon economy and strengthening the role of the private sector, including MSMEs, are two key priorities of the EBRD’s work in Poland. To date the Bank has invested more than €13 billion in 505 projects in the country.