Aim of the Programme and benefits for businesses
This programme supports international Documentary Credits and Letters of Guarantee issued by NBG up to the amount of Euro 200 million and aims at helping Greek businesses to avoid adverse terms and increased cost associated with the use of credit tools. It provides domestic importers and exporters with solutions, as it establishes the conditions to enhance domestic production and activities in foreign markets. Thus, this programme shall substantially contribute to putting the Greek economy back on a growth path.
The cost of confirming / issuing a letter of guarantee / for issuing an IRU to cover eligible transactions through participating correspondent banks amounts to 50 – 110 bps on an annual basis.
International trade transactions are included in the EIB programme subject to the following conditions:
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible for EIB funding are businesses that meet the following criterion:
Number of employees on a consolidated annual basis*
- less than 250 for SMEs
- 250 to 3,000 for medium-sized businesses.
*concerns independent businesses and is calculated on the basis of the number of employees as at the date the loan application is filed.
In the case of non-independent businesses, the number of employees of associated and/or affiliated companies is calculated pro rata and/or in aggregate.
- Businesses active in or transactions related to the following sectors are not eligible:
- Manufacture of any kind of weapons, ammunition, military or police equipment and equipment infrastructure, and facilities designed to constrain individual rights and liberty (i.e. prisons, detention centers of any kind) or violate human rights
- Games of chance and related equipment
- Production, processing or distribution of tobacco
- Activities involving live cattle for experimental and scientific purposes, when it is uncertain, according to the EIB, if such are compliant with the Council of Europe Convention for the protection of vertebrate animals used for experimental and other scientific purposes
- Activities that have an environmental impact that is not largely mitigated and/or compensated for
- Sectors considered socially or ethically controversial or which are forbidden by national legislation (e.g. research on human cloning)
- Purely real estate activities
- Purely financial activities, such as transactions in financial tools
- Any other sector referred to as non eligible in the list of NACE codes provided by the EIB to the confirming bank each time involved
Terms of provision of the EIB guarantee
The EIB offers its guarantee provided that trade transactions meet the following conditions:
- Trade transactions are subject to the International Chamber of Commerce rules each time applicable (UCP, URR, ISP, URDG) and/or incorporate applicable legislation
- The transaction currency is exclusively Euro or USD
- 85% of the transaction amount is less than Euro 21,250,000 (or its equivalent in USD), according to the F/X rate as at the date of the transaction's written acceptance by the confirming bank (Participation Notice)
- No term prohibiting, in any manner whatsoever, assignment of the confirming bank's rights under the eligible transaction, is included in any document related to the said transaction. In the event that such prohibition is provided for, it should be lifted, validly and for the total duration of the transaction, by all parties involved
- The confirming bank may forward transaction data to the EIB without prior consent of any party involved, including the beneficiary
- The business in not active in any non eligible sector of activities (as set out hereinabove).