Lenders count on small-business lending despite the risk attached

Banca Comerciala Romana (BCR), Romania’s biggest bank launched BCR Restart overdraft facility and loan for investments BCR Restart designed to SME, as well as the loan for working capital BCR Restart Micro for micro-enterprises.

The offers are designed to legal persons eligible for securing at least 50% of the loan at specialized guarantee institutions.

Banca Transilvania has recently launched a credit facility for SMEs. The annual interest for the leu variant is 15% while for loans in euro, the interest is 9.5% a year.

The interests for BCR Restart starts from 13% a year for lei and for those in euro, the margin added to EURIBOR rate starts from 4.75%. The approval time is 9 business days since the application is submitted.

BCR said no fee is charged for reviewing applications.

Small and medium-sized enterprises may benefit of a BCR Restart credit line (overdraft) of up to 500,000 lei or the equivalent in euros, given the coverage rate with collaterals. The maximum approval time is 12 months.

SMEs can take up to 1 million lei or the equivalent amount in euros through the investment loan BCR Restart, the loans being granted for 3 to 5 years with a grace period of up to six months. Both BCR Restart credits are designed to small and medium sized enterprises.

Central Bank says small and medium sized enterprises carry the highest risk of default, according to the Stability Report issued yesterday. Companies operating in services and real estate are the most affected by the volume of loan arrears.

In addition to overdraft facility and investment loan, BCR has completed its Restart lineup with a new lending offer designed to working capital, BCR Restart Micro, available in lei. The credit offer is destined to micro-enterprises with a net average flow of 1,500 lei over the past six months. The maximum ceiling for the loan is set at 300,000 lei.

BCR, member of Erste Group, has under management total assets of 17.1 bln euros and has over 652 retail units across the country, as well as 50 business outlets for SMEs and large companies.