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The European Investment Fund (EIF) was set up in 1994 to help small businesses. Its majority shareholder is the European Investment Bank, with which it forms the ‘EIB Group’.
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What does the Fund do?
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The EIF provides venture capital for small firms (SMEs), particularly new firms and technology-oriented businesses. It also provides guarantees to financial institutions (such as banks) to cover their loans to SMEs.
The EIF is not a lending institution: it does not grant loans or subsidies to businesses, nor does it invest directly in any firms. Instead, it works through banks and other financial intermediaries. It uses either its own funds or those entrusted to it by the EIB or the European Union.
The Fund is active in the member states of the European Union, in Croatia, Turkey and three EFTA countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway).
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