Marfin Laiki to lend EUR 50 mln in Cyprus

Marfin Popular Bank, having signed a loan agreement with the EIB amounting to EUR 50 mln for Cyprus, is ready to lend a total of EUR 100 mln to help Cyprus based small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), said Maro Savva, Director Corporate and Commercial Banking.
Savva told the Financial Mirror that MPB having signed a separate agreement for EUR 80 mln with the EIB for SMEs in Greece, will allocate to the full all the money that it is now borrowing from the EIB to lend to Cyprus based SMEs.
“If applications are more than the allocated amount, then we shall submit a request to the EIB to increase the amount with a new scheme,” said Savva, adding that MPB will submit the applications in lots to the EIB for final approval.
The pricing of the loans will be based on Euribor, plus a spread, which should be at least 25 basis points less than the comparable loans that Marfin Popular lends to SMEs, said Savva.
Referring to the guarantees that clients need to pledge, the level of guarantees is the same that Marfin Popular Bank would usually require for similar loans.
Savva explained that the maximum amount for a loan is EUR 12 mln and the minimum EUR 20,000.