Press Release: Boosting SMEs in the cultural and creative sectors: European Commission and EIF launch a new guarantee scheme

The European Commission and the European Investment Fund (EIF) launched on 30 June 2016 a €121 million guarantee initiative to support SMEs in the cultural and creative sectors via financial institutions. This scheme was expected to create more than €600 million worth of bank loans over the next six years.

This initiative allowed the EIF to provide guarantees and counter-guarantees, free of charge, to selected financial intermediaries in order to enable them to provide more debt finance to entrepreneurs in the cultural and creative arena.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: Website: Creative Europe http://www.europeansources.info/record/programme-creative-europe/

ESO: Background information: The Creative Europe programme: European Implementation Assessment http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-creative-europe-programme-european-implementation-assessment/

European Commission: DG Communication: RAPID: MEMO/16/2346, 30.06.16: Creative Europe’s guarantee facility for the cultural and creative sectors http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-16-2346_en.htm

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