European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has agreed to provide a EUR25m trade financing facility to Raiffeisenbank Austria (RBA) to support local companies in Croatia.
RBA, a subsidiary of Raiffeisen International Bank-Holding and a part of RZB Group, has been operating in Croatia since 1995. Through its trade finance operations, RBA supports businesses, particularly in the wholesale, retail and construction sectors.
RBA will use the EBRD financing to support Croatian exporters and importers with various trade finance facilities, such as guarantees and cash advances for financing pre-export, post-export and local distribution of local goods.
Rudolf Putz, head of the trade finance program at EBRD, said: “This facility is a continuation of the EBRD’s successful relation with RBA. It will increase the availability of financing to businesses in Croatia, helping to stimulate trade growth in the country and the region.”
Herbert Stepic, CEO of Raiffeisen International Bank-Holding, said: “This trade finance facility directed at supporting Croatia’s export sector is further proof of the joint commitment that Raiffeisen and the EBRD have to helping economies in central and eastern Europe return to a path of sustainable growth.”