EIB, EIF, and Santander Bank Polska Partner to Drive €5 Billion in Funding for Polish SMEs with Focus on Gender Equality

EIB, EIF, and Santander Bank Polska Partner to Drive €5 Billion in Funding for Polish SMEs with Focus on Gender Equality

(IN BRIEF) The European Investment Bank (EIB), the European Investment Fund (EIF), and Santander Bank Polska have joined forces to launch a new synthetic securitisation agreement aimed at bolstering support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Poland, particularly those promoting gender equality. The initiative will mobilise up to PLN 5 billion, with at least one-third of the funding benefiting businesses led by women, those promoting inclusive employment, or offering products that address the gender gap. The agreement is part of a long-standing collaboration between the EIB Group and Santander, aimed at providing funding for SMEs, supporting climate projects, and advancing women’s economic empowerment. The funding will be available over the next three years and is expected to boost access to capital, particularly for female entrepreneurs in Poland.

(PRESS RELEASE) LUXEMBOURG, 14-Feb-2025 — /EuropaWire/ — The European Investment Bank (EIB), together with the European Investment Fund (EIF) and Santander Bank Polska, has formalized an agreement aimed at injecting PLN 5 billion into small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) across Poland, with a distinct emphasis on supporting gender equality initiatives within the business community. This agreement promises to create a substantial impact, with at least 40% of the funding designated for women-led businesses or those promoting gender-inclusive practices. The transaction, which is part of an ongoing collaboration between the institutions, will provide financing to key policy areas including sustainable and climate-friendly investments.

The financing initiative, a synthetic securitisation agreement, is expected to facilitate new lending opportunities by mobilizing an initial PLN 3.9 billion through a counter-guarantee mechanism. The EIB, EIF, and Santander Bank Polska will work together to leverage these funds, aiming to stimulate further investment at a scale four times greater than the initial EIB contribution. This development comes after the EIB’s ongoing success in supporting Poland’s small business sector, and it marks another important milestone in the partnership, particularly in advancing female entrepreneurship.

Magdalena Proga-Stępień, Member of the Management Board at Santander Bank Polska, remarked, “This agreement underscores our long-standing commitment to enhancing the availability of financing for Polish entrepreneurs, particularly female entrepreneurs. This investment not only supports the growth of businesses but also contributes to advancing gender equality in the entrepreneurial ecosystem.”

Furthering the shared vision for economic inclusion, Santander Bank Polska has been proactively implementing programs that enhance women’s participation in business. Their “Strong in Business” initiative, which includes educational workshops and grants, has engaged thousands of women, fostering professional development and leadership opportunities.

Krzysztof Kowalewski, Vice-President of Santander Leasing Poland, highlighted, “This is a milestone in our continued efforts to support Polish entrepreneurs. We are proud to see a steady increase in the number of women-owned businesses among our clients, particularly in dynamic sectors such as healthcare and retail.”

This financing agreement aligns with broader European goals to stimulate economic growth, advance gender equality, and provide critical funding to SMEs, ensuring that both male and female entrepreneurs can thrive in the evolving Polish business landscape.

Background information

The European Investment Bank (ElB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union, owned by its Member States. Built around eight core priorities, we finance investments that contribute to EU policy objectives by bolstering climate action and the environment, digitalisation and technological innovation, security and defence, cohesion, agriculture and bioeconomy, social infrastructure, the capital markets union, and a stronger Europe in a more peaceful and prosperous world.

The EIB Group, which also includes the European Investment Fund (EIF), signed nearly €89 billion in new financing for over 900 high-impact projects in 2024, boosting Europe’s competitiveness and security.

The EIB Group will soon share full results of its 2024 activities in Poland. The Group’s latest Investment Survey (EIBIS) showed Poland fares better than European Union peers when it comes to gender equality in business management.

To enhance the positive impact of its activities on gender equality and empower women and girls, the EIB Group adopted a Strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Economic Empowerment and a Gender Action Plan, with the aim of embedding gender equality and in particular women’s economic empowerment in the EIB’s business model. It covers its lending, blending and advisory work within and outside the European Union. In 2024, EIB financing for gender equality represented more than €3 billion and over 40 projects. You can find more information here on the EIB gender equality initiatives.

The EIB is also committed to driving gender equality in the workplace. We have included gender equality goals in our business model and are implementing a Strategy on Gender Equality and Women’s Economic Empowerment. We apply Financing for Gender Equality criteria – which are based on the leading global gender-lens investing reporting criteria (“2X”) around the world.

Santander Bank Polska is one of the largest financial groups and the biggest private bank in Poland. It offers state-of-the-art financial solutions to personal customers, micro, small and medium enterprises, and domestic and international corporations.  The bank operates one of the biggest networks of branches and partner outlets. It also renders services via electronic channels, including mobile banking. It is one of market leaders in terms of the use of modern technologies in banking. The bank is a member of the global Santander Group.  The Group is present in 10 key markets in Europe and both Americas (Spain, Poland, the United Kingdom, Portugal, the USA, Chile, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico and Germany). Customer satisfaction and loyalty are a priority for Santander Bank Polska. For this reason, strategic and ongoing management of Santander Bank Polska is geared to creating solutions, products and services that help customers take care of their personal finance and effectively manage their companies.

Technical note on the transaction

In this synthetic securitisation transaction, the EIB Group assumes a significant portion of the risk from a PLN 4 billion lease portfolio. The EIB Group guarantees a senior tranche of around PLN 3.4 billion and a mezzanine tranche of approximately PLN 560 million, while Santander retains the junior tranche. The underlying portfolio consists of leases to small and medium enterprises, originated by Santander Leasing.

EIB Group’s guarantees in this transaction provide capital relief for Santander, thereby freeing up additional lending capacity. Through a retrocession agreement, Santander commits to using this additional capacity to create a new portfolio of eligible loans and leases in an amount of PLN 5 billion that align with the EIB Group’s policy objectives.

The transaction includes a two-year replenishment period, during which Santander can add new leases to the transaction to offset amortisations in the portfolio.

Media Contact:

Gabriela Baczyńska
g.baczynska@eib.org
+352 4379-83852

Press Office
press@eib.org
+352 43791

SOURCE: European Investment Bank