ING to give €1.1 billion in cheap loans to SMEs, to help limit Covid damage

The European Investment Bank (EIB) and Dutch bank ING came to an agreement which will allow the Dutch bank to offer new, cheap loans to small and medium sized companies, in an effort to help limit the impact of the coronavirus crisis, the banks announced on Thursday.

The EIB will guarantee almost 800 million in existing ING loans. In return, ING will provide 1.1 billion euros in new loans to SMEs. 702 million euros of that amount will be loaned at an extra low interest rate.

“In the next phase of the Covid-19 crisis, it is even more important to stimulate Dutch companies with a sound market and financial position to resume their investment programs again and seek new growth opportunities," ING CEO Ruud van Dusschoten said.

Paolo Gentiloni, European Commissioner for the Economy, is pleased that this deal will help SMEs, which were especially affected by the pandemic and traditionally have a harder time accessing bank financing.

"Thanks to the EIB Group guarantee backed by the Investment Plan for Europe, ING will unlock significant additional lending for Dutch SMEs. This is a further clear sign of our commitment to help businesses of all sizes to get through this difficult period," he said