OREANDA-NEWS  The government has reduced the maximum size of the loan for investment purposes for small and medium-sized businesses. Due to this, it is planned to increase the number of recipients of such loans.

The Russian government has reduced the maximum amount of credit for investment purposes from 1 billion rubles to 400 million rubles. This money can be issued to small and medium-sized businesses for the implementation of projects in priority sectors at a reduced rate of 6.5%. The corresponding resolution was signed by Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.

The decision is aimed at increasing the availability of the program of concessional lending, as the reduction of the maximum loan will allow to issue loans to more entrepreneurs, noted the press service of the Cabinet of Ministers.

At the same time, the maximum size of the total volume of loans that can be issued under the program to one borrower does not change and still amounts to 1 billion rubles.

The amendments signed by Medvedev also introduce a quota for small and medium-sized businesses that belong to microenterprises. The quota shall be not less than 10% of the total amount of loans provided for by all credit agreements concluded by banks under the program of concessional lending.

Subsidies under the program of preferential lending are provided by 15 Russian banks. According to their data, as of August 1, 2018, about 1 thousand loan agreements totaling 45.4 billion rubles were concluded with small and medium-sized businesses.

The government noted that the budget for the current year for these purposes was allocated 635.5 million rubles.

"Loans with low interest rates are very popular among different types of state support. It’s amount was increased by 805.3 million rubles ", — explained in the message of the Cabinet.

Support for small entrepreneurs was one of the points of the March message of President Vladimir Putin. According to his task, by the mid-2020s, the contribution of this business to the Russian GDP should approach 40%.

The goals to support entrepreneurs were laid down in the May presidential decree. After the decree was issued, the Ministry of Economic Development prepared its measures to restart support for small and medium-sized businesses: in addition to reducing the size of the loan for business, the Agency also proposed to expand the list of banks participating in the program of concessional lending, to introduce educational programs for farmers and to provide entrepreneurs with a "one-window" service.