Banque Populaire, SOCAMA, and EIF Sign €1 Billion Agreement to Support French SMEs

Banque Populaire, SOCAMA, and EIF Sign €1 Billion Agreement to Support French SMEs

(IN BRIEF) Banque Populaire, Fédération Nationale des SOCAMA, and the European Investment Fund (EIF) have signed a €1 billion loan counter-guarantee agreement under the SME Competitiveness InvestEU program. Over two decades, this partnership with EIF has facilitated €9 billion in loans to 250,000 entrepreneurs. The new agreement will enable Banque Populaire and SOCAMA to continue providing loans through innovative financing products, including an express SOCAMA loan without a personal guarantee, SOCAMA Création loan for new businesses, and SOCAMA Transmission-reprise loan for business acquisitions. This initiative aims to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in France and stimulate local economies.

(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 8-Sep-2023 — /EuropaWire/ —  Over 20 years, the partnership with the EIF has enabled Banque Populaire and SOCAMA to provide €9 billion in loans to 250 000 entrepreneurs.

The signature of a new €1 billion finance contract with the European Investment Fund (EIF) means that Banque Populaire and SOCAMA can continue to grant loans to their entrepreneur clients — benefiting the local economy — via three particularly innovative financing products:

• Express SOCAMA loan without personal guarantee: This loan of up to €50 000 with a duration of 48 to 84 months can finance any capital projects and project-linked working capital requirements.
• SOCAMA Création loan: This loan is for any company created less than two years ago. With a duration of 48 to 60 months and an amount of up to €30 000, it can finance all expenses related to the creation of a company, excluding takeovers (tangible and intangible investments and working capital requirements). Under this loan, the manager’s personal guarantee can be limited to 50% of the loan amount.
• SOCAMA Transmission-reprise loan: With a duration of 48 to 84 months, this loan of up to €150 000 can finance any operation to buy a business. Personal guarantees are limited to 25% of the loan amount.

Chief Executive Officer in charge of BPCE Group’s Retail Banking and Insurance division Hélène Madar said: “Our 20-year partnership shows how much the European Investment Fund trusts the commitment of our regional Banques Populaires and SOCAMA to financing entrepreneurs’ business creation, development and purchase projects. After granting €9 billion in loans to support 250 000 entrepreneurs, our new €1 billion agreement will enable us to continue providing our craftsperson, trader and independent professional customers with loans not requiring personal guarantees from business managers or with limited guarantee levels.”

EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt added: “We are delighted to continue working with the Banque Populaire regional network and SOCAMA to facilitate the creation, development and purchase of all small and medium-sized enterprises in France, with very tangible benefits for local economies. These guarantee schemes set up with EU and EIF support have already supported a huge number of entrepreneurs for two decades, and this new €1 billion long-term funding envelope will be very useful for limiting the financial risk taken on by business managers.”

This financing is supported by the European Union under the SME Competitiveness InvestEU Fund

Media Contact:

BPCE Group — Banque Populaire
Christine Françoise
+33 (0)1 58 40 46 57 / + 33 (0)6 23 40 31 62
christine.francoise@bpce.fr
www.bpce.fr
www.banquepopulaire.fr

EIB Group in France
Christophe Alix
+33 (0)1 55 04 74 55 / + 33 (0)6 11 81 30 99
c.alix@eib.org
www.eib.org

SOURCE: European Investment Fund