The FINANCIAL — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is providing a €15 million senior unsecured loan to the Compagnie Internationale de Leasing (CIL) for on-lending to local micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Tunisia. The loan is the EBRD’s first investment in the country’s leasing sector, according to EBRD.
The funds will help CIL finance MSMEs, which are the core of the Tunisian economy but remain largely underserved. It will also provide long-term funding to a leasing company in a country where liquidity has been an issue since 2011. CIL will use the funds to extend leases to MSMEs for the acquisition of equipment, light commercial vehicles, trucks, trailers and real estate.
“MSMEs are the backbone of the Tunisian economy and we are very happy to provide this much-needed long-term funding to CIL to finance and develop smaller enterprises. We see CIL as a strong partner for the EBRD’s first engagement in Tunisia’s leasing sector. The company has over 20 years of experience and is keen to continuously upgrade its standards,” Marie-Alexandra Veilleux, Head of the EBRD office in Tunisia, said.
“We are delighted to be the first leasing company to partner with EBRD to further support MSME’s in Tunisia. Through this loan we will aim to provide financing to a larger number of small businesses across the country,” Mohamed Brigui chairman of the CIL Board and Managing Director said.
The loan will be accompanied by a €200,000 technical cooperation package – funded mostly by the SEMED Multi-Donor Account – to provide the support that CIL needs to further enhance the company’s risk management, reporting and corporate governance.
CIL is the country’s largest independent leasing company not affiliated with a bank. It is listed on the Tunisian stock exchange and majority-controlled by a group of local investors.
Since September 2012, when EBRD operations in Tunisia began, the Bank has invested €125 million across 11 projects in the country, according to EBRD.
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