Black Sea Trade and Development Bank provides a USD 10 million credit line to Industrial Investment Bank for Turkish SME affected by the earthquakes
Press Release | 04-May-2000
On April 4, 2000 in Istanbul, the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB) signed a 6 year, USD 10 million credit agreement with the Industrial Investment Bank (SYB). The proceeds of the credit line will be used by SYB for providing much needed financing to small and mid-sized enterprises (SME) affected by the August 17 and November 12, 1999 earthquakes in Türkiye. The agreement is a culmination of the excellent partnership among SYB, BSTDB and the Undersecretariat of Treasury of the Republic of Türkiye, which provided a sovereign guarantee for the project. This credit line is the first BSTDB project in Türkiye.
The loan agreement was signed by Mr.Ersoy Volkan, President of BSTDB, and Mr. Ahmet Ayaydın, Chief Executive Officer and Mr.Yavuz İşbakan, Deputy Executive Officer of SYB. The guarantee agreement was signed by Mr.Aydın Karaöz, Director General of Foreign Economic Relations of the Undersecretariat of Treasury, and the President of BSTDB.
Repayment of the loan principal is scheduled to begin in September 2001, after a 18 month grace period, in equal semi-annual installments for the period of 4.5 years. Those eligible for the loans include only companies who do not employ more than 1000 workers and whose pre-project net fixed assets, excluding land and building values, does not exceed USD 6 million.
BSTDB was established as an international financial institution in 1998 by eleven countries of the greater Black Sea region (Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Greece, Moldova, Romania, Russia, Türkiye, and Ukraine) which are members of the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation. The purpose of the Bank is to promote cooperation among its member states and accelerate their economic development, providing funds to public and private enterprises for financing of projects and trade transactions. The BSTDB authorized capital is SDR 1 billion (about USD 1.35 billion). The headquarters of the Bank is located in Thessaloniki, Greece. BSTDB commenced operations in June 1999 and signed its first loan agreement in December 1999 for a trans-Balkan gas pipeline project, which would enable to increase the gas supply from Russia to Türkiye via Ukraine, Moldova, Romania and Bulgaria. The project was co-financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (London).
SYB (SInai YatIrIm BankasI) is one of the first development banks in Türkiye established with private capital and it has been significantly supporting Turkish industry since it was founded in 1963. In the coming months, SYB will also be assuming the responsibility of intermediating in credits received from the International Cooperation Bank of Japan and the European Investment Bank to be used by private enterprises that suffered from the earthquakes.