OREANDA-NEWS. July 29, 2011. The EBRD is continuing its support for the development of the leasing market in Moldova with a EUR 2 million loan to BT Leasing Moldova to provide a steady stream of financing for equipment for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), reported the press-centre of EBRD.

Moldova’s economic recovery is gathering pace and demand for financing from local SMEs is growing, but bank loans to businesses remain limited. In response, the EBRD is diversifying the availability of financing for small businesses, which represent about 98 per cent of Moldovan enterprises.

With the EBRD’s loan, BT Leasing Moldova, a subsidiary of Romanian Banca Transilvania Financial Group, will be able to expand its leasing programmes to meet a growing demand for leasing products among domestic SMEs. The company will launch equipment leasing, offering longer-term lease contracts for small manufacturers.

“The EBRD supports BTL Moldova’s strategy to broaden its outreach to customers across the country and to expand its product portfolio. By assisting the further development of the leasing market we will make a real difference to Moldovan small businesses, helping them become stronger and more competitive,” said Libor Krkoska, Head of the EBRD Office in Moldova.

“BTL Moldova attaches great importance to our agreement with the EBRD, as it helps us take a further step towards our company’s development. We have great ambitions and we are committed to contributing to the development of good business environment in Moldova, sustaining the SME sector. This financing line, combined with experience of Banca Transilvania Financial Group in developing products and services aimed at small and middle-sized companies, represents one of the main drivers of our future activity,” added Adrian Balmus, CEO of BT Leasing Moldova.

The leasing industry in Moldova remains underdeveloped and leasing companies face difficulties in securing long-term funding. This affects the availability of alternative financing sources for local businesses, hindering the development of the SME sector. 

This loan is the EBRD’s second investment in Moldova’s leasing sector under a EUR 70 million Moldova Financial Sector Framework approved in 2008. In its first leasing transaction in Moldova in December 2010, the EBRD supported Total Leasing, another leading leasing operator in Moldova.

Since the beginning of its operations in Moldova, the EBRD has committed over EUR 460 million in various sectors of the economy, mobilising additional investment in excess of EUR 320 million.