SBCI
The Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) was set up in September 2014, following Ireland’s exit from the EU/IMF programme, to ensure that Irish SMEs have access to stable, lower cost, long-term funding options. By supporting and helping to develop an effective credit market for SME finance, the SBCI ensures that it is easier for SMEs to get the finance they need to prosper and build economic activity in Ireland.
The SBCI’s mission is to support growth, prosperity, and the transition to sustainability by driving competition, enabling innovation, and improving access to finance in the Irish credit market. The SBCI’s goal is to support the economic development in Ireland and ensure access to flexible funding for Irish SMEs by facilitating the provision of:
- flexible products with longer maturity and capital repayment flexibility and in some instances the provision of a partial guarantee subject to credit approval;
- lower cost funding to financial institutions, the benefit of which is passed on to SMEs;
- market access for new entrants to the SME lending market, creating real competition.
The release of long-term funds by promotional (or state-backed) financial institutions, through frontline (or traditional) finance providers is a successful and effective model for funding SMEs throughout Europe.
As of October 2022, SBCI had an outstanding guaranteed volume of almost bEUR2.1 It supported a total of more than 21,000 small and medium-sized companies.
| AECM accession year | 2017 |
| Legal form | Private Limited Company – DAC |
| Ownership | Public |
| Geographical and sectoral coverage | National All sectors |
| Products | Loan guarantees, Senior debt to Finance Providers |
| Counter-guarantee | EU and National counter-guarantee |
Dublin/Brussels, 24th November 2022
