The FINANCIAL — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the expansion of international trade with a US$ 20 million trade facility to Turkish lender Fibabanka under the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP). Fibabanka is the second issuing bank under the TFP in Turkey.
Through this new facility the EBRD will issue guarantees in favour of international commercial banks covering the political and commercial payment risk of the transactions undertaken by Fibabanka. In addition, Fibabanka will also benefit from the EBRD’s award-winning technical cooperation projects in trade finance, according to EBRD.
Jean-Patrick Marquet, EBRD Director for Turkey, said: “The EBRD has just become a shareholder of Fibabanka and we are delighted to further our relationship. Today we are welcoming Fibabanka into the EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme to expand their geographical reach and help them to better meet the trade finance needs of their clients.”
Bekir Dildar, General Manager of Fibabanka, added: “We are very glad to have extended our cooperation with the EBRD in trade finance as well. This programme will increase our bank’s competitiveness and, as a result, our market share in trade finance.”
Fibabanka was established through the acquisition in 2010 of the Turkish arm of Millennium Banco Comercial Português by prominent local businessman Hüsnü Özyeğin, the owner of FIBA Holding. The bank, in which the EBRD holds a 9.95 per cent stake, offers corporate, commercial, small and medium enterprise (SME), retail, agricultural and private banking services through a network of 67 branches across Turkey.
The EBRD started investing in Turkey in 2009. It currently operates from offices in Istanbul, Ankara and Gaziantep. In 2014 Turkey became the leading recipient country of the EBRD, with new investments worth €1.4 billion. To date, the Bank has invested over €6 billion in the country.
The EBRD’s Trade Facilitation Programme, launched in 1999, aims to promote foreign trade to, from and among the countries where the EBRD invests. Through the programme, the EBRD provides guarantees to international confirming banks and short-term loans to selected banks and factoring companies for on-lending to local exporters, importers and distributors. The TFP currently includes over 120 partner banks in 25 countries where the Bank invests, with limits exceeding €1.5 billion in total, and more than 800 confirming banks worldwide.
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