EBRD European Bank for Reconstruction and Develo : supports international trade in Turkey through Odeabank

Odeabank is the third issuing bank under the EBRD's Trade Facilitation Programme in Turkey.

$50 million finance line to facilitate foreign trade

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the expansion of international trade with a $50 million trade facility to Turkish lender Odeabank under the EBRD's Trade Facilitation Programme (TFP).

Through the facility the EBRD will issue guarantees in favour of international commercial banks covering the political and commercial payment risk of the transactions undertaken by Odeabank.

Jean-Patrick Marquet, EBRD Director, Turkey, said: 'We are pleased to welcome Odeabank into the EBRD's Trade Facilitation Programme and also strengthen our cooperation with the bank in the area of trade. The Programme will help Odeabank to better meet the trade finance needs of its clients and further expand its activities in that sector.'

Alpaslan Yurdagül, Odeabank Financial Institutions and Investment Banking Assistant General Manager, added: 'For the first time, Odeabank has signed a $50 million contract with the EBRD to support the trade finance activities of enterprises. Through this contract, Odeabank aims to diversify the support it provides for trade products.'

A young bank, Odeabank started its operations in 2012 as a subsidiary of the largest Lebanese bank, Audi. In only two and a half years it has rapidly grown to become Turkey's 10th-largest private deposit bank in terms of asset size in a sector made up of almost 50 lenders. It operates 54 branches in 14 cities and employs over 1,500 people.

Previously, the EBRD has provided a €60 million loan to Odeabank for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).

The EBRD started investing in Turkey in 2009 and currently operates from offices in Istanbul, Ankara and Gaziantep. To date, it has invested over €7 billion in Turkey through 180 projects in infrastructure, energy, agribusiness, industry and finance.

Turkey is the top destination of EBRD finance, with €1.9 billion invested in 2015 alone.

The EBRD's Trade Facilitation Programme, launched in 1999, aims to promote foreign trade to, from and among the countries where the EBRD invests. Through the Programme, the EBRD provides guarantees to international confirming banks and short-term loans to selected banks and factoring companies for on-lending to local exporters, importers and distributors. The TFP currently includes over 120 partner banks in 25 countries where the EBRD works, with limits exceeding €1.5 billion in total, and more than 800 confirming banks worldwide.

Odeabank is the third issuing bank under the Programme in Turkey.