OREANDA-NEWS. November 20, 2012.   In the course of the Russian-German Interstate Summit Consultations, State Corporation ‘Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs (Vnesheconombank)’ and German State Bank KfW signed a Credit Agreement on Extending 110 million US dollars to Vnesheconombank.

On behalf of Vnesheconombank the Agreement was signed by Member of Board - Deputy Chairman Mikhail Kopeikin and Deputy Chairman Alexandr Ivanov and on behalf of KfW – by KfW Bankengruppe Board Member Gunter Braunig.


Under the Agreement credit resources are to be used to support and promote small and medium-sized enterprises as well as public private partnership projects in the field of environmental protection, innovations and modernization in the North-West region of the Russian Federation (Saint Petersburg, the Leningrad region, Pskov region, Novgorod region, Kaliningrad region).

M. Kopeikin said that as of today they received applications for participating in the program for a total amount of more than 100 million US dollars from 5 banks actively operating in the region in extending xcredits to SMEs. Moreover, pilot projects of innovative small and medium-sized enterprises are being thrashed out with the participation of Russian constituent entities administrations and development institutions. “Credit agreements are expected to be signed with partner banks this December and in early 2013 financial resources are to be extended to enterprises implementing SME projects in innovations and modernization”, he explained.

In his turn A. Ivanov stressed that credits would be extended for a period of up to 5 years at the rates in line with lower level of the market for lending to SMEs.

This Agreement was signed to build on the Memorandum of Understanding signed in May of 2012 between the Permanent International Secretariat of the Council of the Baltic States, KfW and Vnesheconombank. The Council is comprised of eleven Baltic Sea States and the European Commission, with its partners being Russian and German state development banks, namely, Vnesheconombank and KfW. In June of 2012, the Russian Federation was appointed Chairman of the Council.

The Council of the Baltic Sea States is a general political forum for regional intergovernmental cooperation. It performs its functions through network and project activities designed to boost competitive edge of the Baltic Sea region. The Council is comprised of eleven states of the Baltic Sea region: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Island, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Poland, the Russian Federation, Sweden as well as the European Commission.