The thirst of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for access to working capital and securing cheap and easy financing in order to be able to implement their investments is "witnessed by the posting of more than 3,000 requests made in just one week on the platform of the Hellenic Development Bank (HDB) for the first stage of the Entrepreneurship Fund (TEPIX III) procedure to the 12 cooperating commercial banks.
This was stressed, among others, by the Managing Director of the Hellenic Development Bank (HDB), Ismeni Papakyrillou, during her presentation at an event co-organized in Thessaloniki tonight by the Association of Exporters (SEVE), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the city, and the Hellenic Development Bank (HDB). During the event, TEPIX III was presented, the purpose of which is to establish SMEs in the Greek market and then to strengthen their extroversion.
It should be noted that the TEPIX III Loan Fund was created under the Entrepreneurship Fund III with the aim of providing SMEs with investment-purpose loans and special-purpose working capital loans on highly favourable terms. By empowering existing and start-up small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to grow and prosper, HDB provides the liquidity and capital needed for investment and also enables businesses to reduce their financing costs.
"The TEPIH III programme builds on the success of the previous TEPIH I and II programmes by offering a comprehensive financing proposition for SMEs, whether they need working capital or are seeking financial support for their investment projects. They ensure extremely favourable financing terms, with significant interest rate subsidies, high co-financing or guarantee rates, a long grace period, and loan maturity," Ms. Papakyrillou said.
The position that such programs support up to the last and most... The Deputy Minister of Interior, responsible for Macedonia and Thrace, Stathis Konstantinidis, stressed that the Hellenic Development Bank has proven to be a very important "tool" in the effort to help businesses in all their ranges in order to modernize, create new jobs, progress on the basis of sustainability, and increase competitiveness.
Among other things, he hailed the dynamism of the Greek economy, saying that our country is back on the investment map and noting that the Greek government's concern is to make Greek entrepreneurship competitive and stand out on the international scene.
Greek SMEs are in need of cheap loans, and the loans given through the Hellenic Development Bank are particularly attractive, Simeon Diamantidis, president of the Association of Exporters-SEBE, said, saying that the aim of the institution is to help small and medium-sized enterprises in their outward-looking efforts, since such a development will "bring us closer to the goal we have set: Greek exports to represent 60% of GDP by 2027.".
"Exports have reached 50% of GDP; in 2023, we are close to 47% and we want to help boost extroversion to reach the 60% target by 2027. Small businesses, which need cheap credit to invest, can also contribute to this," he said.
"May TEPIX III become a benchmark for supporting and strengthening small and medium entrepreneurship," wished on her part HDB's Ergo Investments and Guarantees Director, Eleni Kolofotia, and after elaborating on all its aspects, she noted that HDB offers financial products worth 3.9 billion euros to support SMEs.
Panagiotis Meneksopoulos, Secretary General of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Thessaloniki, expressed his conviction that the Hellenic Development Bank serves as the intermediary between businesses and banks and noted that "SMEs need it because HDB facilitates access to finance."
THE PROGRAMME
The new programme gives SMEs the opportunity to finance investments at a cost up to 70% lower than the current cost in the banking sector and is expected to facilitate credit to the part of the economy that has the least access to bank lending.
Under the €500 million TEPIF III, it is expected that €2.2 billion of loans, leveraged through the banking system, will be made available to SMEs on highly favourable terms, widening the range of SMEs financed and their lending perimeter.
The CFF III offers medium-term financing, which is 40% interest-free, while the remaining 60% of the loan capital is offered at a highly competitive interest rate. In addition, a partial interest rate subsidy of up to 3% is available for up to 24 months, subject to certain conditions.
For investment-purpose loans, the subsidy is provided without conditions.The company must be a start-up, meaning it cannot be older than five years, or it must already be operating but receiving funding from an EAT instrument for the first time.
"Depending on the aid scheme, the maximum loan amount can be up to €10 million for SMEs and have a term of up to 12 years. The percentage of the EAT guarantee is 70% for existing enterprises and 80% for new enterprises with up to five years of operation," said Eleni Kolofotia, director of ErgoInvestments and Guarantees at the Hellenic Development Bank.
Specifically, businesses have two options, which cover both their working capital needs and the financing needs of their investment projects:
interest-bearing loan with monthly/quarterly payment of principal and interest instalments to cover all business needs. In the case of investment loans, the amount of financing ranges from EUR 10,000 to EUR 1,600,000 and its duration ranges from 5 to 12 years. In addition, a capital grace period of up to 24 months is offered.
a credit limit to cover working capital needs, ranging from EUR 10 000 to EUR 500 000. In this category of financing, the duration ranges between two and five years and the capital grace period does not exceed 12 months.
