A South Korean fund has agreed to invest EUR 20 million in non-banking financial company SME Finance. The loan portfolio held by SME Finance will double to EUR 50 million by the end of this year and it is planned to provide funding of EUR 600 million to companies in the Baltic States and Poland over the next 2020 year.
The largest investment in the Baltic States into a factoring company
The global independent financial brokerage firm Market Securities negotiated the deal between SME Finance and the new strategic investor from South Korea. The company, with offices in London, Paris, Geneva, Hong Kong, New York and Dubai, has been active in facilitating investment opportunities in the Baltic States to South Korean entrepreneurs.
“As far as we are aware, this is one of the largest investment in the Baltic States, where EUR 20 million will be provided to a non-bank financial institution in a few months,” Danny Skutelis, the Head of Structured Solutions and Alternative Investment Strategies at Market Securities, says. – Among many other investment opportunities, SME Finance has been chosen for its rapid growth, good financial performance and a very careful risk assessment. The commitment of the company executives to achieve the next goal – to reach half a billion euros in loans to customers within a few years – was also convincing.”
Credit limits will grow to EUR 5 million and interest rates will fall to the level of bank loans
According to Mindaugas Mikalajūnas, the Chief Executive Officer of SME Finance, attracting a new strategic investor and an additional financial injection of EUR 20 million is the result of convincing financial performance and the active search for partners. “But first and foremost, this is an important message for small and medium-sized businesses. If we have been able to provide the limit up to EUR 2 million for one customer so far, the new investments will increase this to EUR 5 million. In addition, lending will cheap – from now on, we will be able to provide business loans at annual interest rates starting from 6 percent, which is already close to bank financing,” M. Mikalajūnas says.