The EIF and GE Capital sign agreement to support micro and small businesses in France

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The EIF has signed an agreement with GE Capital France's Equipment Finance, which specializes in providing alternative forms of financing solutions to businesses, in order to help increase lending to micro and small businesses in France.

For businesses, particularly small and mid-market firms, GE Capital EMEA provides a range of specialized financial products and services including receivables financing, distribution finance, acquisition finance and commercial loans and leases to support customer needs. In addition, GE Capital EMEA is engaged in retail banking in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Nordics, Poland and Switzerland.

Under the European Union's Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme, which promotes lending to SMEs, the EIF will provide a guarantee on up to €140m of funds lent by GE Capital to micro and small businesses. The agreement has been signed for a period of three years.

The EIF guaranteed funds are intended to allow GE Capital to increase lending to businesses which often face difficulties accessing finance. The funds will be available across most of GE Capital's Equipment Finance products, including leasing financial leasing and hire-purchase.

(source: EIF web-site)

Link:

http://www.eif.org/what_we_do/guarantees/news/2012/GECapital.htm