NIB signs SME onlending facility with Oulun Osuuspankki in Finland

The Nordic Investment Bank (NIB) has signed a ten-year loan agreement of EUR 30 million with Oulun Osuuspankki for onlending to SMEs and environmental projects in north-western Finland.

The loan programme will help Oulun Osuuspankki finance investments made by SMEs in tangible capital, such as machinery and equipment, production and service provision facilities. Investments in information and communications technology, as well as research and development, are also eligible.

Small-scale environmental projects made by e.g. housing companies and households eligible for financing will lead to decreases in greenhouse gas emissions or wastewater treatment.

“This loan programme is intended to improve access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises and thereby facilitate productivity growth in north-western Finland,” says Henrik Normann, NIB President and CEO.

“The Oulu Region has undergone a structural change where one major company is replaced by a large number of SMEs, particularly in the ICT business. The financing package now acquired will strengthen the ability of Oulun Osuuspankki to finance these companies,” says Timo Levo, CEO of Oulun Osuuspankki.

In terms of balance sheet total, Oulun Osuuspankki is the third-largest cooperative bank in the OP-Pohjola Group in Finland. The bank’s registered office is in Oulu. At the end of 2013, its balance sheet total stood at EUR 2.5 billion. Oulun Osuuspankki has 12 branches in six municipalities, in Oulu and its neighbouring localities in Northern Ostrobothnia. The bank provides banking services to both corporate customers and private individuals and is the market leader in its region.

NIB is an international financial institution owned by eight member countries: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway and Sweden. The Bank finances private and public projects in and outside the member countries. NIB has the highest possible credit rating, AAA/Aaa, with the leading rating agencies Standard & Poor’s and Moody’s.

For further information, please contact

NIB, Ms Taina Ulkoniemi, Senior Manager, Origination, at +358 10 618 0231,

NIB, Niina Rantti, Communications Officer, tel. +358 10 618 0265,

Oulun Osuuspankki, Timo Levo, CEO, tel. +358 10 253 5200,