Registration for the IMM Invest Romania program is open, providing the funding needed for current activity or investments by Romania’s small and medium-sized companies. The platform www.imminvest.ro, where you can sign up, will be operational starting April 23. You can find all the information on our site, but we thought we’d answer a few questions here as well.

What should you know about the program?

• IMM Invest is a loan program for companies, with a state guarantee of up to 90%;
• You can apply at least until the end of 2020. There is no application deadline. The ‘first come, first served’ rule does not apply;
• Zero interest. In practice, the state covers the interest and fees at least through December 31, 2020. For next year, the interest subsidy will be decided by new legislation issued by the Government of Romania.
• The maximum guarantee cap is RON 15 billion. The funds allocated to the program are substantial, so we estimate they will be sufficient at least for those applying for loans under this program in 2020;
• The maximum tenor is 72 months for investment loans and 36 months for working capital loans/credit lines.

How do you know if you’re eligible?

• Companies in almost all sectors can access the facilities (excluded are those engaged in gambling and betting; investigation and security activities; the production or sale of weapons, ammunition or explosives; tobacco; alcohol; substances under national control; and narcotic and psychotropic plants, substances and preparations). Companies in sectors that have been and are affected by COVID-19 are not excluded.
• We will assess loans based on:

What steps do you need to take?

• Print, sign and then scan all the documents requested on www.imminvest.ro;
• Upload them on www.imminvest.ro;
• Choose BT as your partner bank in the program. Wink wink!
• If all goes well, you will receive approval in principle from FNGCIMM, which will send you a confirmation (as we understand, it takes at most a day or two);
• In parallel, please let us know that you want to apply for a loan under this program. How can you do that? Directly with your contact person at the bank — by phone, of course, because we are in a state of emergency. He or she will tell you which documents we need. Or online on our site.

What else should you know?

• The application allows you to choose only one lender.
• If your financing request is rejected by the first bank you selected, you still have two more options.

What documents do you need?

• For now, the FNGCIMM notification regarding your intention to apply under the program. Afterwards, we will tell you exactly what is missing for us to review your request. We will certainly need your 2019 financial statements together with the trial balance.

At this point, it’s important to know that the guarantee cap is large enough and the authorities have announced that the ‘first come, first served’ criterion does not apply, so there is no reason to worry about when you need to apply.

In addition, there are still matters to be settled between the banks and FNGCIMM (such as signing the agreement that governs the working procedures for this program) — therefore, the review of financing applications at bank level has not yet begun.