FMO, the Dutch development bank, has provided a EUR 20 million senior loan facility to Komercijalna in Serbia.
The transaction was signed on Friday 28th of June. With this transaction, FMO expands its presence in Serbia, a country in the midst of a severe economic crisis that needs support to stimulate economic growth and job creation through development of its SME sector.
The loan will support Komercijalna Banka to further expand its lending activities to small and medium businesses. Through its extensive branch network, the Bank expects to distribute large portions of the attracted funds nationwide, thereby supporting job creation and economic development in the regions of the country.
From the side of FMO, CIO Jurgen Rigterink, , commented: “FMO is proud to contribute to the economic development of Serbia through this facility. It will create valuable jobs and support the innovation and dynamic of the Serbian economy”.
Komercijalna Banka’s deputy CEO Dragan Santovac commented: ”It is my great pleasure to state that this EUR 20 million loan from FMO will significantly contribute to the support that Komercijalna Banka is providing to SME clients in Serbia. At the same time it presents a new success of the FMO mission in the same market, and it will further support the promotion of investments in and development of the SME market segment. We have therefore successfully extended an already well-established cooperation between our institutions, which has been initially established indirectly, owing to the fact that the FMO is one of the founding shareholders of the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) with which Komercijalna Banka maintains a long standing cooperation.”
About Komercijalna Banka
Komercijalna Banka was founded in 1960 and has the Republic of Serbia and EBRD as major shareholders. The bank is a universal Serbian bank and number two in the market in terms of loans and deposits. The Bank operates through 250 branches across Serbia and employs 3,000 staff.
About FMO
FMO supports sustainable private sector growth in developing and emerging markets by investing in ambitious entrepreneurs. FMO believes a strong private sector leads to economic and social development, empowering people to employ their skills and improve their quality of life. FMO focuses on three sectors that have high development impact: financial institutions, energy, and agribusiness, food & water. With an investment portfolio of EUR 6.3 billion, FMO is one of the largest European bilateral private sector development banks.
