Last year, the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB) provided Czech enterprises with a record volume of support exceeding CZK 51 billion (app. EUR 2 billion) of direct or guaranteed loans. In total, it helped to finance 10,636 business projects. Prevalent part of the support was used by small enterprises to cover their operating expenditure. According to the Czech National Bank, the risk of the so-called credit crunch was successfully eliminated also thanks to ČMZRB programs.

Family businesses represent an important and stable part of the Czech economy. Last year, the definition of family businesses was incorporated into the Czech legislation. This opened up space for a financial support of family businesses from the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB).

One of the long-term goals of the European Union is sustainable development and protection of environment. One part of this effort is to make the waste management systems more efficient. Roughly 1,500 enterprises are active in this segment of economy. SMEs planning to acquire new technologies or expand their business can finance their projects on preferential terms through the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB).

More than eighty per cent of Czech exports go to the European Union. This share does not change in time even though there is a growing number of Czech companies, which are able to export their often unique and hi-tech production beyond the EU territory. The final destination is not only developed markets, but increasingly also emerging and developing markets.

The European Investment Advisory Hub’s funding will enable the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank to strengthen support for investment projects in priority sectors such as renewable energy, transport, and the circular and digital economy. The advisory unit will accompany a wide range of public and private project promoters in the Czech Republic. EIB support will complement that provided by DG REFORM under the Structural Reform Support Programme.

Our guarantee program COVID III has been extended until the end of June 2021 due to the amendment of the Act on a state guarantee for the COVID program. Amendment was signed by the President on 1 November 2020. Moreover, this program will guarantee not only working capital loans, but also investment loans.

The Czech National Bank issued a licence for the National Development Fund SICAV (“NDF”). This will enable the participation of private capital on infrastructure financing in the Czech Republic. Board of Directors of NDF together with potential private investors have already started to identify and assess potential infrastructure projects for financing. Beside the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB), four commercial banks as private investors joined this initiative: Česká spořitelna, Komerční banka, Československá obchodní banka and UniCredit Bank Czech Republic and Slovakia. Other private investors can join NDF in future.

Between January and October 2020, the Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB) provided Czech enterprises with almost 9,700 guarantees and soft loans worth of CZK 47 billion (app. EUR 1.75 billion). Total volume of support is higher than for our record years 2018 and 2019 combined. This upsurge is caused by the coronavirus crisis, which affected many sectors of the Czech economy in March and once again in October. This is also reason why most of the support was realized in the form of working capital, compared to prevailing investment financing in previous years.

The Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank (ČMZRB) will help to turn brownfields in the Ostrava region into modern business centres. Together with the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MIT), the bank has launched a new program, which will offer concessional mezzanine financing. The aim of the program is to finance approximately six projects focussing on the revitalization of brownfields into business centres. First call is expected to be started early in 2021.

The Czech-Moravian Guarantee and Development Bank signed an agreement with the Prague Stock Exchange. ČMZRB will support small and medium-sized enterprises through equity instruments. Concretely, it will create “IPO fund”, through which it will enter the START market and become one of investors on the Czech stock market.