EIF and Nordea Offer Green Loans to Finnish Firms

Helsinki-based Nordea Bank and the European Investment Fund (EIF) have signed an agreement to provide loans totalling more than $450 million to Finnish companies to boost green energy initiatives and support their digitalisation.

Under the guarantee agreement, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) as well as small Mid-Caps in Finland will be able to tap projected financing of up to $450.07 million for green and sustainable investments such as solar panels, electric cars, energy efficiency, and the adoption of digital technologies.

The EIF, which is part of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group, is providing guarantees that will ensure favourable terms, such as reduced interest rates, by Nordea.

Nina Arkilahti, Head of Nordea Business Banking said that Nordea was committed to supporting Finnish businesses as they transition towards a greener future. The agreement with EIF will offer even broader opportunities for Nordea’s customers to play a key role in Finland’s green transition, Nina said.

The guarantees are backed by the European Commission’s InvestEU programme, which aims to trigger more than $385.68 billion in additional investment between 2021 and 2027 for EU policy priorities including the green and digital transitions. 

EIF Chief Executive Marjut Falkstedt said that they were delighted to work closely with Nordea to ensure that Finnish businesses receive the financial support needed for the green transition. This new agreement will boost access to funding, enabling small businesses to grow while driving a greener future, he added.

Two Guarantees

The EIF loan guarantees from which Finnish SMEs and small Mid-Caps in Finland will benefit are the sustainability guarantee, which supports the transition to a green and sustainable economy by promoting environmentally friendly and inclusive investments such as decarbonisation, renewables and energy efficiency, and the innovation guarantee that enhances access to finance for research and innovation intensive companies to support their use and adoption of digital technologies.

The partnership between Nordea and the EIF equips Finnish SMEs and small Mid-Caps with financing needed to thrive in an increasingly competitive and environmentally conscious market. With Finland at the forefront of sustainable development, this partnership will play a important role in shaping the country’s economic future.

In addition to the new financing for Finnish SMEs and small Mid-Caps, the EIF is teaming up with Nordea to offer funding to businesses in Sweden, Norway and Denmark.

EIF is part of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group and its central mission is to support Europe’s small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) by helping them access finance.

The EIF designs and develops venture and growth capital, guarantees and microfinance instruments that specifically target this market segment. In this role, the EIF furthers key EU policy objectives such as competitiveness and growth, innovation and digitalisation, social impact, skills and human capital, climate action and environmental sustainability, and more.

Green financing drive

Nordea’s pact with EIF also covers other Nordic countries as it’s guarantee agreement signed in 2023 initially covered Denmark, Sweden and Finland, with Norway being added in April 2024. The InvestEU guarantee programme is now implemented in all these countries except Denmark, where it will be implemented at the start of 2025.

EIF’s Green Financing Drive

The EIF has also been supporting the green financing drive more widely across the Nordic region in recent months. In October, the fund said it was committing $103.55 million to a green-energy infrastructure fund investing in the region run by German-based Prime Capital, which targets areas such as wind and green hydrogen.

In November, the EIF said it was committing $41.42 million to HAVN Capital II, a private equity fund being launched by Norwegian-based HAVN Capital, which is targeting a total size of around $259 million.