EIB, Santander back women-led firms with EUR108M

The European Investment Bank (EIB) Group has partnered with Banco Santander in a new securitization transaction that will unlock approximately €1.43 billion in financing for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and mid-cap companies across Spain. Its purpose is to enhance the competitiveness of business, speed up the green transition of the country, create jobs and increase financing possibilities of women-led business.

The EIB Group, which comprises the European Investment Bank (EIB) and the European Investment Fund (EIF), has provided €876 million financing for the securitization. The EIB is contributing approximately €476 million; the EIF is investing €400 million by issuing a guarantee in the Class A2 securities. It is the first securitization transaction in Spain where the guarantee is directly referenced in the securitization notes, a major step for the financial market in the country.

The funding will be welcomed by Spanish companies as they are searching for much-needed capital to finance their working capital needs, improve their liquidity position and overcome the effects of inflation, high energy costs and high levels of interest rates.

Key Highlights:

• €1.43B in new financing for Spanish SMEs and mid-cap businesses
• €162M for green projects and €108M for women-led businesses
• Spain's first securitization with an EIF guarantee embedded in the notes

Over €162m of funding will be directed to projects that support the green transition, building on the needs of businesses to invest in a greener transition, sustainability and energy efficiency, as part of the financing package. Furthermore, loans for women entrepreneurs and businesses run basically by women have been allocated €108 million, complementing the work on financial inclusion and supporting women-led businesses.

The deal was officially inked in Madrid by EIF's Chief Investment Officer Marco Marrone, European Investment Bank's Head of the Multinational Financial Institutions Division Joan Basora and Banco Santander Spain's Chief Financial Officer Catalina Mejía García.

As part of the partnership, Marco Marrone commented that SMEs are 'still a key force in innovation and employment and economic growth across Europe'. He pointed out the investment reaffirms the EIF's ongoing support for businesses in Spain to have easier access to finance, especially for those seeking sustainable development and women-led companies.

Joan Basora noted that SMEs and mid-cap companies are the backbone of Spain's economy and that the transaction would play a significant role in bringing more funding to these businesses. By mobilizing private investment, the EIB remains a driver of economic growth and job creation and of territorial cohesion in the country, he added.

According to Catalina Mejía García, the collaboration allows Santander to enhance its financial services for Spanish SMEs and mid-caps, which in turn support the growth of businesses and their sustainability initiatives and are a key driver of the country's overall economic development and competitiveness.

In addition to financing, the transaction highlights the EIB Group's overall policy to release new lending capacity through the use of financial instruments like securitization, to lower the risks for financial institutions and to support the European Union's Savings and Investments Union. This project is also in keeping with the EIB Group's strategy, in particular its focus on climate action and environmental sustainability and economic, social and territorial cohesion.

The EIB Group is the financing entity of the European Union and is owned by the 27 Member States of the EU. In 2025 the Group entered into new financing and advisory activities worth €100 billion for over 870 projects in priority themes such as climate action, digitalization, agriculture, social infrastructure, innovation and security. The EIB Group financed and invested in Spain alone around €11 billion in 2025, plus an extra €2.9 billion under the EU's NextGenerationEU program, via the Regional Resilience Fund.

Established in 1857 and headquartered in Spain, Banco Santander is one of the world's largest commercial banks. Leveraging its expertise in financing sustainable development and economic growth, the bank is serving over 176 million customers worldwide and actively building financing programs for the benefit of businesses.