As of mid-October, the lending limit for loans granted by the COVID-19 Enterprise Guarantee Fund (3rd cycle) has been increased from €50,000 to €250,000. At the same time, the turnover threshold for eligible businesses is increased from €200,000 to €1,000,000.

The COVID-19 Enterprise Guarantee Fund was created to support enterprises' access to loan capital through the provision of guarantees. The objective of the Fund is to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on business operations. This will be achieved by strengthening their liquidity through working capital loans.

Warranty Budget

The total public expenditure of the Fund amounts to 2,000,000,000.00 euros (public community and national resources). Eligible for co-financing resources from EPANEK amount to 1,320,000,000.00 euros and will cover SMEs, while the remaining amount will be financed from national resources.

The third cycle of the Action is funded as part of the Union's response to the COVID-19 pandemic - React EU.

The loans of the 3rd Cycle are addressed exclusively to Very Small Businesses with a turnover of up to 1,000,000 euros and a maximum loan amount of up to 250,000 euros.

Loan amount from the Guarantee Fund

There is no minimum limit on the requested loan amount

The maximum amount that can be requested by a company is as follows:

• Twice the annual payroll costs of the Enterprise (including social security contributions, as well as the cost of personnel working on the premises of the enterprise, but officially included in the payroll of subcontractors) for 2019. In the case of Businesses created after January 1, 2019, the maximum loan must not exceed the estimated annual salary cost for the first two years of operation or
• 25% of the total turnover of the Company in the year 2019 or
• After documentation and based on justification and a plan that determines the liquidity needs of the beneficiary, the loan amount can be increased beyond the above limits I and II to cover the liquidity needs from the date of granting the loan and for the next 18 months for the Small and medium enterprises and the self-employed and for the next 12 months for large enterprises.

Loan interest rate

The interest rate of the Loans is borne by the Borrower and can be agreed floating or fixed. It will depend on the pricing policy of each partner company, taking into account the mechanism for transferring the benefit of the guarantee to the Final Recipient.

Guarantees - Guarantee Fund

The Guarantee provided concerns new loans that will be granted until December 31, 2021. The term "disbursement" means the time of disbursement of these Loans. The guarantee covers the loan throughout its duration and until the full and complete payment of any debt under the loan. The warranty has a five-year duration. The forfeiture request, however, can be submitted until 31.12.2027, if the default event has occurred until 31.12.2026.

The supply of the guarantee paid by the companies is fully subsidized, subject to the limitations of state aid. The State aid scheme to which the three circles of the Fund are subject is the "Temporary framework for State aid measures to support the economy during the current outbreak of COVID-19"

Beneficiary of the Action

Hellenic Development Bank (EDB)

Online Submission

Business requests are first submitted to the electronic platform www.ependyseis.gr and after the finalization of the submission, the companies submit their funding requests for evaluation to the cooperating Banks – Financial Institutions.

Contact the Guarantee Fund

For more information, interested parties can contact Hellenic Development Bank , at email: covid.guarantee@hdb.gr and at 210-7450400, as well as the bank of their choice.

Partner banks that interested businesses can contact after submitting their application on the website: www.ependyseis.gr :

National Bank, Piraeus Bank, Eurobank, Alpha Bank, Attica Bank, Optima Bank, Syn. Bank of Epirus, Pancreatia Syn. Bank, Co. Bank of Thessaly, Co. Karditsa Bank, Co. Bank of Central Macedonia, Co. Bank of Chania.

See more about the Establishment of the COVID-19 Business Guarantee Fund here.