DLL, a global asset finance company for equipment and technology, has been given €200m in financing by the European Investment Bank (EIB) to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), DLL said in a press release.
The EIB is the lending arm of the European Union, the biggest multilateral financial institution in the world and one of the largest providers of climate finance.
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As part of the agreement, the Netherlands-based DLL will provide a further €200m, meaning that €400m in total will be made available to SMEs in Spain and Italy.
EIB & DLL
This EIB financing will strengthen DLL’s capacity to support the investments of businesses, especially in the transport, machinery and bio-economy sectors.
DLL, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Utrecht-based Rabobank, will leverage this facility to increase its support of sustainability investments for Spanish and Italian SMEs.
DLL will specifically increase its financing for projects focused on the transition to a low carbon economy, which is a major goal of the EIB Group activity.
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By GlobalDataThese projects include the installation of solar panels, replacement of self-propelled agricultural tractors and substitution of diesel-fuelled forklifts with electric equipment.
Furthermore, the programme will promote leasing as an alternative financing solution to standard bank loans.
This type of financing is particularly beneficial to SMEs, which typically have limited capital and have difficulty providing sufficient collateral to secure loan financing, especially during difficult times.
The companies accessing this credit line will be able to receive financing with competitive maturity and interest rate terms.
This will be the third transaction the EIB has contracted with DLL and the first one between both entities with a specific sustainability component for Spain and Italy.
Spanish companies will have access to 65% of this facility, while Italian businesses will have access to 35%.
Emma Navarro, vice-president of EIB, said: “Thanks to this operation, companies will be able to access new credit lines to maintain or continue growing their business and thus create jobs while contributing to a green economic recovery of the EU.”
Luca Nuvolin, general manager Italy and head of region south at DLL, said: “Many of our customers are going through difficult times and dealing with commercial uncertainty.
“DLL has a proud history of partnership and we have always stood with our customers, supporting them through good and bad times.
“We are thrilled that through this EIB transaction we will be able to serve select SME customers in Spain and Italy and can strengthen our sustainability ambitions through the support of projects contributing to a low carbon economy.”
The EIB lends to the public and private sectors and supports SMEs through local banks and lends money to innovative start-ups and mid-cap companies can receive direct support for research and development investments, according to the EU.
The EIB does not lend more than half of the cost of a project, “because we want our loans to crowd in financing from private investors and other public financial institutions,” the lender said on its website.
“For certain projects that support innovation and skills in Europe, we accept more risk than a commercial bank. We also offer technical assistance to help prepare and implement projects,” the lender said.
