BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 18. European Investment Bank is providing a €200 million guarantee to Unicredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia, enabling the lender to extend up to €400 million in new loans to mid-sized companies in the two countries, Trend reports via the EIB.
The guarantee allows for larger loan sizes, longer maturities, and loans denominated in Czech korunas — a first for an EIB-backed operation in the region. The initiative targets manufacturing and export-oriented businesses, helping rapidly growing firms meet higher borrowing needs.
“This operation supports competitiveness in Czechia and Slovakia, both deeply integrated into EU supply chains, while increasing Unicredit Bank’s lending capacity,” the EIB said.
The deal is part of the EIB’s €4 billion Growth4MidCaps Lending Envelope, launched in March 2023 to address financing gaps for mid-sized companies across the EU through risk-sharing operations with financial intermediaries.
The EIB Group, including the European Investment Fund, signed nearly €100 billion in new financing in 2025, expected to mobilise €350 billion in investments and create 1.5 million jobs by 2029. In Czechia alone, EIB operations totalled €1.93 billion last year.