Garanti Bank takes out EUR 22.5 mln loan from IFC to finance SMEs

Newsroom 24/02/2012 | 11:20

International Finance Corporation (IFC), member of the World Bank, has offered a EUR 22.5 million loan to Turkish Garanti Bank Romania that wants to finance SMEs, especially those owned and managed by women entrepreneurs.

The transaction is IFC’s first loan designed to support companies run by women entrepreneurs in Eastern Europe. Garanti Bank Romania has recently developed a special product for women entrepreneurs, benefiting from its parent bank’s experience in financing women-owned enterprises in Turkey.

Statistics show there are over 500,000 female entrepreneurs in Romania, representing 34 percent of shareholders and associates in local firms.

“Women play a crucial role in business, and they have a direct impact on the type and quality of economic growth that a country experiences,” said Tomasz Telma, IFC director for Europe and Central Asia. “Strengthening women’s participation in the Romanian private sector both empowers women and harnesses untapped potential for advancing development.”

“Women’s role in the companies’ management boards has increased and we are the first banking institution in Romania that offers financing solutions that fit them,” said Burak Yildiran, deputy general manager, Garanti Bank Romania.