OREANDA-NEWS. August 07, 2013. At its meeting the KfW Board of Directors approved a global loan negotiated between KfW and the Spanish development bank ICO. The loan will provide financing for the Spanish SME sector.

The contract was signed immediately following the board meeting by the CEOs of the two development banks, Mr Roman Escolano of ICO and Dr Ulrich Schroder of KfW.

The signing was preceded by a press conference in which German Federal Finance Minister Dr Wolfgang Schauble and Federal Economics Minister Dr Philipp Rosler, together with their Spanish counterparts, Economics Minister Luis de Guindos and Industry Minister Jose Manuel Soria, presented the contract agreed between Germany and Spain within its political context.

The KfW global loan to ICO, which totals EUR 800 million, will strengthen the Spanish development bank’s refinancing base. ICO will pass the loan funds on to Spanish SMEs through their principal banks as low-interest loans, and thereby significantly improve their access to credit.

The global loan is backed by a state guarantee from the Federal Republic of Germany in favour of KfW.