Panorama

PANORAMA / SUMMER 2020 / No. 73
EU CORONA RESPONSE
Triggering the ‘escape clause’ to allow exceptional fiscal
support for healthcare systems, people and companies
Suppoting research on vaccines,
diagnostics, treatment
Putting in place the most flexible state aid rules ever
in the EU, to save jobs and companies
Helping ensure supply of medical equipment:
increased production in EU and joint
procurement
Repatriation of EU citizens
stranded abroad
Issuing guidelines on measures to
stop the spread of the virus, on
testing strategies
Providing funding through the Coronavirus
Response Initiative, liquidity through the European
Investment Fund
Ensuring the flow of goods and
workers’ mobility in the EU
single market
Frank Lee, Head of Financial Instruments Advisory Division at
the EIB, mentioned that fi-compass has produced a factsheet
‘Responding to the COVID-19 crisis through financial instruments’.
This aims to help to mobilise ESIF financial instruments, including
in combination with grants. The objective is to inspire managing
authorities, National Promotional Banks and institutions and
other stakeholders to use the ESIF financial instruments and to
learn from the case examples which already exist.
Ieva Zālīte, Policy Officer, Financial Instruments and Relations
with International Financial Institutions Unit, DG REGIO, European
Commission, then explained the CRII and CRII Plus legislation
and other regulatory initiatives, including state aid measures.
instrument, the ‘National Fund for Social Entrepreneurship’.
Polish authorities have used the new flexibilities to improve
the borrowing and repayment conditions for businesses.
Both examples highlight how financial instruments can be
mobilised quickly to respond to the needs of businesses in
Europe. As such, the European Commission would also like
to inspire and support managing authorities, National Promotional
Banks, and institutions in other Member States, too.
The webinar concluded with a questions and answers session
during which experts from the European Commission and the
EIB responded to questions from the attendees.
Leading by example
Two examples of measures implemented to respond to the
COVID-19 outbreak were presented during the webinar. Then
Ivan Lesay, Chief Executive Officer, Slovak Investment Holding
(SIH) explained how the ‘SIH Anti-Corona Guarantee’ financial
instrument is helping SMEs in Slovakia.
Poland has also reacted quickly and adopted measures in
response to the crisis. Aleksandra Kwiatkowska, Unit Director
in the European Programmes Department, Bank Gospodarstwa
Krajowego presented the adjustments to the Polish financial
FIND OUT MORE
Webinar: https://bit.ly/2YLu204
Written responses: https://bit.ly/3g1gJyw
If you have further questions related to ESIF financial
instruments, please contact our team in the European
Commission at:
REGIO-B3-FINANCIAL-INSTRUMENTS@ec.europa.eu.
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