“UniCredit per l’Italia”: EUR 10 billion to support our small and medium-sized Italian businesses
Monday 12 February 2024
With “UniCredit per l’Italia”, we are committed to supporting Italy and responding to the liquidity needs of individuals, families and businesses. Today, our Bank is back with a rich series of interventions and an additional credit of EUR 10 billion to support our companies. Discover our campaign “Ogni Impresa, una storia” (“Every enterprise, a unique story”).
In 2024, we aim to foster the growth of Italian SMEs and micro-businesses via initiatives such as "UniCredit per l'Italia". The Italian government has this year issued new measures to empower small and medium enterprises and MID Caps. This plan includes a state guarantee of 80% on lending to SMEs and micro-businesses for both working capital and new investments, with a total allocated fund of up to EUR 1 billion.
At UniCredit, we have promptly responded to this initiative, demonstrating our concrete commitment to supporting communities by distributing a EUR 10 billion credit for Italian businesses. Some of the actions that we are taking are supporting:
· Support for micro-enterprises, the engine of local employment growth, with a special focus on youth and female entrepreneurship. Within a ceiling of EUR 1 billion, specific forms of microfinance and microcredit are envisaged with a guarantee from the SME Guarantee Fund, free of charge and equal to 80% of the amount, as well as subsidized conditions for business risk coverage and dedicated training initiatives, all within the various programs activated by UniCredit.
· Support for third-sector entities, in line with the Group's commitment to fair development and broader financial inclusion, through forms of financing tailored to the specific needs of entities and social enterprises, including the use of recently introduced forms of public guarantee. In addition to the EUR 500 million in financial support, there are dedicated services, such as the Ilmiodono fund raising platform and the Carta Etica funds for the development of social projects.
· Support for business activity in the South, to which 40 per cent of the resources will be allocated, with particular reference to investments and the establishment of new entrepreneurial activities. For the latter, under the Resto al Sud programme, there is the possibility of access to public interest and capital grants.
· Agribusiness: Up to EUR 1 billion to support investments by agricultural and agrifood enterprises, technological and digital upgrading processes, and transformation towards sustainability in line with European directives on green transition. This will be done through diversified financial instruments, using the most advantageous guarantee schemes, including the ISMEA public guarantee free of charge and equal to 100% for the construction of renewable energy production plants. Specialist consultancy with more than 200 dedicated managers located throughout the territory.
· Tourism: Up to EUR 1 billion for financing specific investment strategies, such as green transition, technological innovation and hotel upgrading, and support for working capital via flexible forms of amortisation that take into account the seasonality of receipts. The Made4Italy programme is now available, aimed at fostering a joint offer between tourism and agrifood for the enhancement of territories.
· Support for the ESG transition towards more sustainable business models through specialised consultancy, starting with a free ESG score - gradually being extended to all SMEs - provided by Cerved Rating Agency on the Open-es platform to outline a transition path and financial solutions specifically designed to incentivise the achievement of companies' sustainability objectives.
“Italian companies have demonstrated extraordinary resilience against a backdrop of high rates, inflation and geopolitical tensions. As a bank, it is our duty to help companies thrive, particularly those with a social mission at their core. We will continue to support their ambitions and accelerate their path to growth now and in the future. UniCredit’s purpose is to empower communities to progress, and this applies even more so when times are difficult. We know that our role is more critical than ever at this juncture in our economic story and will continue to do everything we can to deliver on this purpose for all our stakeholders.”
Andrea Orcel, CEO of UniCredit and Head of Italy
Every day, the narratives and ventures of our customers and entrepreneurs who have chosen UniCredit inspire and guide us in playing a concrete role in supporting their success stories and Italy.
“With the launch of the third edition of 'UniCredit per l’Italia’, we reaffirm our unwavering dedication to our clients and our commitment to support them every step of the way. We persist in empowering the excellence of Made in Italy through a range of solutions aimed at fostering its development and transition towards greater environmental and social sustainability. We are introducing new investment resources and revamping our service to enhance the quality of our support. By doing so, we aim to strengthen the foundations for guaranteeing inclusive and sustainable growth across all our country’s territories”.
Remo Taricani, Deputy Head of Italy
In the upcoming weeks, through “Ogni Impresa, una storia” (“Every enterprise, a unique story”), we will delve into the stories of our entrepreneur clients'.
You can find a comprehensive description of all measures, along with their economic conditions, at www.unicredit.it/perlitalia (in Italian).
To find out more about the previous editions please read our December and June articles.
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