25% of fund allocated in the first four months

Keen response for the BOV JAIME Financing Package ●

Bank of Valletta has announced that, as at end June 2016, over €12 million of the €50 million worth of financing made available by the bank through the BOV JAIME Financing Package had been taken up.

The BOV JAIME (Joint Assistance Initiative for Maltese Enterprises) Financing Package was launched on the local market in mid-February, following an agreement between the bank and the European Investment Fund (EIF). It makes use of EU Structural and Investment Funds resources contributed by the Government of Malta and cofunded by the European Union through Horizon 2020 resources and EIB Group resources.

Bank of Valletta revealed that well over 100 SMEs had successfully applied for financing through the BOV JAIME Financing Package. Designed specifically for small and micro-enterprises, the package provides tangible benefits to SMEs because it significantly reduces costs through discounted interest rates and reduced collateral requirements. It has thus made financing available and affordable when it matters most – at the point when businesses need to grow.

The BOV JAIME Financing Package is not the first SME-driven financing tool designed by Bank of Valletta to support this important economic sector. In fact, it was preceded by the BOV JEREMIE Financing Package that went on to become a reference case study at EU level. The bank later launched BOV4SME and BOV Start Plus, likewise aimed at easing access to financing SMEs and microenterprises.

Bank of Valletta claimed that it remains firm in its commitment to be the bank for SMEs, and to this end it has invested significantly, both in terms of the expertise of its people as well as through a network of six regional business centres that support the retail network in financing business customers. The BOV Representative Office in Brussels is another important element in the bank’s strategy to collaborate with EU bodies in designing EU financial instruments. Furthermore, the bank is working closely with constituent bodies to increase awareness of this package as well as other support the bank can offer SMEs to help them grow their business. for

Information about the BOV JAIME Financing Package is available by contacting Bank of Valletta on 2275 1529 or by email to smefinance@bov.com