European Investment Fund (EIF) and UniCredit signed an InnoFin agreement on guarantees to increase lending to innovative small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in eight countries. This transaction was supported by the Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation and the European Fund for Strategic Investments (EFSA), which forms a key part of the Investment Plan for Europe.
This agreement provides that UniCredit, through its banks, offer additional financing in the amount of 160 million euros for innovative companies in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Serbia. Banks in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia will be supported by guarantees provided by the EIF, as well as by the Horizon 2020 Programme for Research and Innovation, while the guarantee for banks in Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania will be supported by investment plan for Europe.