1. SME Financing: EU Programmes and EFSI
Roger Havenith
Head of Unit
Financing of competitiveness, innovation and employment policies
European Commission
DG Economic and Financial Affairs
Ljubljana, 15 May 2015

2. SMEs in the EU 28 million SMEs in the EU:
account for more than 99% of all companies
employ 66.5% of all private-sector workforce
Slovenia
115,000 SMEs
72% of all private-sector workforce
Very flexible
Stable employer, source of organic growth and innovation
Share of total number of EU companies
Source: Eurostat, Commission Communication on Modern SME policy for Growth and Employment

3. SMEs: Access to finance in Slovenia
Short term interest rates for loans
Slovenia: higher rates than in peer countries (SK – in the euro area; PL, CZ – outside euro area)
Higher rates than EU average (EA – in red)

4. Eco-system for SME Financing
Healthy fiscal situation, sound financial markets: Assistance to countries in difficulty, creation of new legislation and institutional infrastructure
Legislation supporting financial market efficiency (work on pan-European banking market or truly European venture capital industry)
Entrepreneurship support
catering for the needs of SMEs,
information and partnership network,
start-up programmes, incubators, awards 4

5. Information and Networking
One-stop-shop for SMEs: Enterprise Europe Network
600 business support organisations in 53 countries
Information and advice on EU funding programmes, EU legislation and other matters related to doing business in other European countries
Facilitating cross-border business cooperation, R&D and technology transfer
Feedback to the Commission on EU legislation
The Enterprise Europe Network is our One-stop-shop for SMEs.
It provides information on EU funding programmes and EU legislation
The EEN helps also with cross-border business cooperation, R&D and technology transfer
The EEN also provides SMEs information on how to expand outside EU

6. Financial Support to SMEs
Grants (for research, innovation, climate change, etc.)
Financial instruments
Guarantees to financial intermediaries that provide lending to e.g. infrastructure projects, SMEs, persons at risk of social exclusion
Equity/risk capital, e.g. venture capital to SMEs with high growth potential or risk capital to infrastructure projects
Other risk-sharing arrangements with financial intermediaries in order to increase the leverage capacity of the EU funds
or a combination of the above with other forms of EU financial assistance in single instruments (e.g. grants, or as joint instruments with Structural Funds)
Source: Financial regulation (EC) No 966/2012, Commission delegated regulation of on the rules of application 6 6

7. 1998-2013: EU Financial Instruments for SMEs
Debt Financing
SME Guarantee Facility
: So far approx. EUR 595m of EU budget generated EUR 19.3bn of lending to 368,000 SMEs, volumes are increasing fast.
Risk-Sharing Finance Facility (RSFF)
: Dedicated guarantee for SMEs, supporting lending of 2.8bn to research and innovation intensive SMEs and small mid-caps.
Equity
Investments in venture capital funds
: So far, EUR 553m of EU resources generated EUR 3bn of total investment volume available, amounts growing fast. 458 highly innovative SMEs covered so far.
In addition
Structural Funds
: EUR 11.5 billion dedicated to financial instruments for SMEs 7

8. Financial Instruments for 2014-2020
EU-level Instruments
Investment Plan - EFSI
Regional / National Instruments
Research, Development Innovation
Horizon 2020
Equity and Risk Sharing Instruments
(EUR 2.7 bn, including at least EUR 1.5bn for SMEs)
SME Window
(SMEs and small mid-caps)
Infrastructure and Ionnovation Window
Instruments under European Structural and Investment Funds
Joint with EU level
Off-the shelf instruments
Tailor made instruments
Growth, Jobs and Social Cohesion
Competitiveness & SME (COSME)
Equity & guarantees
(EUR 1.4 bn)
Creative Europe
Guarantee Facility
(EUR 121m)
Social Change
& Innovation (EASI)
(EUR 192m)
Erasmus+
Guarantee Facility
(EUR 517m)
Infrastructure
Connecting Europe Facility (CEF)
Risk sharing (e.g. project bonds) and equity instruments 8

9. SMEs: Where to look? 9 9

10. New Investment Plan (EFSI)
SME Window
Support to SMEs and mid-caps is foreseen. A specific SME Window will be created.
Financial support must be additional to what will have been delivered under the existing and already foreseen programmes in the period
The SME Window should have a budget of up to EUR 5 billion
The SME Window should mobilise more than EUR 75 billion of investment. Around 185,000 SMEs and small mid-caps are expected to benefit from the support.