Bulgarian Development Bank (BDB) has negotiated EUR 80 million from the China Development Bank (CDB) to finance Bulgarian companies. The loan agreement was signed today by BDB executive director Angel Gekov and the Vice President of China Development Bank Chongqing Branch – Mr. Peng Jianxun, in the presence of His Excellency the Ambassador of the People's Republic of China to the Republic of Bulgaria – Mr. Zhang Haizhou and Ms. Marinela Petrova – Deputy Minister of Finance.
This is the second loan extended by China Development Bank to the Bulgarian financial institution. The co-operation between the two banks dates back from 2009 when BDB received a EUR 5 million loan. The resources were mostly used by BDB for the financing of investment projects of small and medium-sized enterprises.
The contracted funds will be used for providing investment and working capital loans as well as credit lines for Bulgarian companies, borrowers of BDB. The resources can also be used by BDB to support strategic projects within the “One Belt, One Road” Initiative, which was launched in 2013. Currently, over 100 countries and international organizations take part in the initiative. Its main goal is to build infrastructure and energy connections between Asian and European countries, especially within Middle and Eastern Europe. It is expected that investments amounting to USD 8 trillion will be accumulated for the realization of the projects.