MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD lends $ 2.4 million to ProCredit Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina for energy efficiency, homeowners eligible for EU grants

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the The UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently announced that it is loaning € 2 million ($ 2.37 million) to ProCredit Bank Bosnia and Herzegovina (PCB BiH) for retrocede “residential investments in insulation, windows and heat pumps.” , solar panels and other improvements ”that reduce energy consumption. PCB BiH is a member of the German company ProCredit Holding, whose members provide banking services to individuals as well as to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that previously had limited access to formal financial services.

In support of the transaction, the EU agreed to offer end borrowers cash incentives for the completion of their renovations. These homeowner grants go up to 20 percent of the amount of each retail loan.

PCB BiH Board Chairman Amir Salkanovi ?, said: “We have… helped preserve the environment by using hybrid vehicles and other measures within our organization. We are therefore proud to sign a new line of credit for improving energy efficiency with the EBRD to ensure that many households in Bosnia and Herzegovina can achieve higher energy efficiency standards.

The EBRD announced the loan under the EU’s Green Program for the Western Balkans and is disbursing funds from the EBRD’s Green Economy Finance Facility (GEFF). Founded in 2019, GEFF provides funds to 145 financial institutions in 27 countries to lend them to SMEs as well as individuals for “green” investments in Eastern Europe, Western Asia and the Middle East. East. The GEFF is supported by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance; the EU; and the Western Balkans Investment Framework (WBIF), which is funded by “the EU, financial institutions, bilateral donors and governments of the Western Balkans”. Since 2021, GEFF has invested 4.6 billion euros ($ 5.6 billion) in projects aimed at mitigating climate change as part of the EBRD’s commitment to become a “majority green bank”. ‘by 2025. These GEFF investments have funded loans to approximately 190,000 customers, reducing annual carbon dioxide emissions by 8.6 million tonnes.

In 2020, PCB BiH reported total assets of BAM 608 million (USD 368 million), gross loan portfolio of BAM 467 million (USD 283 million) and deposits of BAM 331 million (USD 200 million). ProCredit Holding banks operate in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Ecuador, Georgia, Germany, Kosovo, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia and Ukraine. In December 2020, the group reported assets of 7.76 billion euros ($ 9.14 billion), a gross loan portfolio of 5.25 billion euros ($ 6.18 billion) and customer deposits of 4.90 billion euros ($ 5.79 billion).

Founded in 1991, the EBRD seeks to support a “transition to open market economies, while fostering sustainable and inclusive growth” in 38 countries in Central Asia, Eastern Europe and North Africa. It does this by providing business advice, supporting trade finance, and investing debt and equity in backers of microenterprises and SMEs. With a focus on “promoting private and entrepreneurial initiative,” the bank disbursed around € 11 billion (US $ 13.3 billion) to 411 projects in 2020. EBRD shareholders include 69 countries plus the EU.

By Harriet Ritchie, Research Associate

Additional sources and resources

EBRD press release
https://www.ebrd.com/news/2021/ebrd-eu-and-austria-finance-energy-savings-in-bosnia-and-herzegovina-.html

PCB BiH home page
https://www.procreditbank.ba/

PCB BiH Annual Report 2020
https://www.procreditbank.ba/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/ProCredit-Bank-dd-ENG-FINAL-.pdf

ProCredit Holding home page
https://www.procredit-holding.com/

ProCredit Holding annual report
https://www.procredit-holding.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/2020_EN_PCH_AR_L.pdf

GEFF home page
https://ebrdgeff.com/

Home page of the Austrian Federal Ministry of Finance
https://www.bmf.gv.at/

WBIF Home Page
https://www.wbif.eu/

EU Green Agenda for the Western Balkans webpage
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/FR/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52020SC0223

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