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13.03.2020

With EUR 322 million in new loans and equity participations, OeEB reports a new business record for the business year 2019. Around half of the newly signed project volume contributes to climate finance.

OeEB was able to increase its new business again compared to the previous year: EUR 322 million were made available on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Finance in the form of loans and equity participations for private investments in developing countries. The year 2019 was marked by the implementation of OeEB's new strategy, which is characterized by climate finance and a focus on the world’s least developed countries (LDCs), especially in Africa.

Around half of the new project volume signed in 2019 can be counted towards climate finance. A total of 21 transactions were completed. Around EUR 23 million were invested in Africa.

OeEB: climate-friendly investments and innovations

"Combating climate change is one of the most central challenges of our time. Making a positive contribution to climate protection is therefore firmly anchored in our strategy," explain Sabine Gaber and Michael Wancata, members of OeEB’s Executive Board. OeEB is Austria's largest contributor to international climate finance and supports the fight against climate change by providing finance for climate-friendly projects.

With the launch of the "African-Austrian SME Investment Facility", which OeEB handles acting as trustee for the Austrian Ministry of Finance, and the first closing of the "Gutmann OeEB Impact Fund", OeEB introduced new instruments in 2019 that serve to implement development policy goals. "USD 1 trillion is missing each year to meet the United Nations’ sustainability goals. Mobilizing private funds, as in the Gutmann OeEB Impact Fund, is an essential prerequisite to close this investment gap," Gaber and Wancata explain.

Result at a glance

In the past financial year, OeEB generated a net profit of EUR 5.8 million (2018: EUR 6.8 million), the operating result was EUR 8.4 million (2018: EUR 9.9 million). The total portfolio of loans and equity participations amounted to EUR 1.37 billion at the end of the year with new business of around EUR 322 million (investment finance and equity participations). In addition, OeEB provided EUR 0.44 million from its own funds for project-related measures to strengthen the developmental effects of its financing.