TBC Bank Group PLC (“TBC PLC”) announces that its subsidiary, JSC TBC Bank ("TBC Bank"), has signed a loan agreement on local currency funding in the amount equivalent to US$ 20 million with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (“EBRD”). The facility is a joint financial instrument of the EBRD and the European Union (“EU”), provided under the EU4Business-EBRD Credit Line programme, and will finance the sustainable investments of local micro, small and medium enterprises (“MSMEs”) in technology and equipment.
The transaction, signed by TBC Bank’s CEO Vakhtang Butskhrikidze and EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso, aims to finance local businesses to upgrade their products and services in line with EU standards and thereby enhance their competitiveness on local and international markets. Customers financed under this facility will also receive grant incentives and will benefit from international expertise to implement their investments successfully, funded by the European Union under the EU4Business initiative.
“I am delighted to have signed another deal with our strategic partner, the EBRD, under the EU4Business-EBRD Credit Line programme. We have successfully collaborated with the EBRD for more than two decades, and throughout this period achieved remarkable developmental impacts in Georgia. The new facility is very important for our country’s economy as it enables local MSMEs to benefit from the opportunities offered by the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (“DCFTA”) between Georgia and the EU. In addition, local currency financing will further support the development of Georgian MSMEs without creating a foreign exchange risk. This credit line has proven to be one of the most popular financing tools, hence we would like to express our gratitude to the EBRD and the EU for extending this much-needed financial resource to TBC Bank", - Vakhtang Butskhrikidze, CEO, TBC Bank said.
