Chatzipetrou to OT.gr – Transformation of businesses is what is needed and the only solution

The president of the Hellenic Development Bank (HDB), Athina Chatzipetrou, speaking to the stand of OT at the Thessaloniki International Fair, refered to the strengthening of healthy entrepreneurship, in the context of the agenda of sustainable development, of green economy and digital transformation.

Ms. Chatzipetrou pointed out that the Hellenic Development Bank creates better conditions and better costs for financing businesses, noting that the main role of the bank is to facilitate the companies that have the possibility to be financed.

Healty risk sharing

She noted, however, that in terms of funding criteria, as opposed to grants such as repayable advances, “There must be such criteria so that competition is not distorted. We do not want to create generations of red loans. The state guarantees for 1/3 of the loans, the bank for another 1/3 and the entrepreneur for the last 1/3 of them. So, there is a healthy risk sharing: either we will all win or we will all lose. The state shouldn’t guarantee for the 80% -90%.”

The transformation is the only solution

In fact, regarding whether she worries that red loans can be re-created, she noted: “There is always the notion of risk in businesses. Businesses have a life cycle. There will be businesses that will fail, but new ones will be created. Transformation is what is needed and the only solution, at the same time. We need to turn to green and digital investments. Even small and medium-sized enterprises should introduce corporate governance criteria and an entrepreneurial culture.”

Regarding the possibility of the bank investing abroad, the president of the Hellenic Development Bank stated that the development banks have a national character. “They invest abroad when they support their country’s investments, as we are likely to do in the future. We already have very expanded collaborations. It is not the request of foreign development banks to invest in Greece.”

According to Ms. Chatzipetrou, “Αt the moment we are looking ahead. We are creating the agenda of sustainable development, of green and digital economy”, and in this direction is also moving the eligibility of HDB: “You are designing a product and you say that I am financing investments in energy or in digital transformation. In this way, the direction is very clear. And whoever participates, must show capital consumption in this sector “.

6.5 billion euros invested in SMEs

HDB programs aim primarily at SMEs. However, given that, as Ms. Chatzipetrou pointed out, in European terms, these are companies with a turnover of up to 2 million euros, HDB aims at all businesses in Greece. As she characteristically said, out of 8.5 billion loans given through the Hellenic Development Bank, 6 billion were invested in SMEs, but also 2.5 billion were addressed to some large companies for the Greek standards. “The aim was to protect somehow the lost turnover and the lost jobs,” she said.

Eligibility criteria

Ms. Chatzipetrou highlighted the need for the expansion of the companies’ eligibility criteria. To be precise, she stressed that “What we lack and need to expand are the criteria of bankability. So far, we use Central European criteria, taking into account state criteria.

As we are a less mature economy, we need to expand our eligibility criteria with a slightly different format, according to which entrepreneurs will be selected based on what jobs they have done, what partnerships and what customers they have.

“We must give to the Greek businessperson the confidence they need.” For a banker or an investor it is important to know that the one who finances, the corporate scheme, has won in innovation competitions, has market executives and important collaborations. This can be done through platforms that we will create, through which a little more information will be given. In fact, the company is being interviewed to receive funding. ”

We need to encourage the mergers

On the occasion of the incentives announced by the Prime Minister for business mergers, the president of HDB noted that in Greece there are very small, family businesses. “The state gives them incentives. We want to strengthen mergers, to give the companies the possibility to choose on their own the size of the merge or to give them the chance to merge in some sectors, and here comes the scheme that will emerge, with a favorable rate of 15% to have favorable lending terms. So you cover a range of things. This will give the company the resilience to maintain a steady growth rate.”