The European Investment Fund (EIF) helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) grow and prosper in Europe, promoting innovation, supporting employment and improving the economy. As part of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group, we design and deploy financial instruments, which enable banks and funds (financial intermediaries) to better serve SMEs. As a result, we attract more privatecapital into the SME space, we kick-startnew financing markets and ecosystems,and ultimately make more financingavailable to SMEs across the EU and associated countries.

The EIF manages resources on behalf of the EIB, the European Commission (EC), national and regional authorities and other third parties.

The EIF is a public-private partnership whose tripartite shareholding structure includes the EIB, the EU represented by the European Commission and various public and private financial institutions, including Austria Wirtschaftsservice Gesellschaft mbH (aws), Erste Group Bank AG, Raiffeisen Bank International AG, Unicredit Bank Austria AG.