News

The first WB EDIF Business Forum took place in Belgrade on 26 June 2018 as part of the 12th WB EDIF PAG meeting. The Forum was hosted by the Ministry of Economy of Serbia and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and took place under the auspices of the European Commission with the support of the EIF.

The event gathered more than 150 participants from the entire region, including officials from the beneficiary economies, EC, EUDs, IFIs, Chambers, banks and finance providers as well as a number of SMEs. Several panels were organized to learn more about what WB EDIF has to offer, to hear stories from the companies benefitting under the facility and to discuss the main access to finance challenges.

The Forum was opened by the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Marko Cadez, State Secretary of Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Serbia, Branimir Stojanovic and Head of Cooperation at Delegation of the European Union to Serbia, Ingve Engstrom.

A business to finance event was organized in the afternoon, where the SMEs from the Western Balkans had the chance to meet the finance and advisory providers under the WB EDIF.

The first WB EDIF Business Forum took place in Belgrade on 26 June 2018 as part of the 12th WB EDIF PAG meeting. The Forum was hosted by the Ministry of Economy of Serbia and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and took place under the auspices of the European Commission with the support of the EIF.

The event gathered more than 150 participants from the entire region, including officials from the beneficiary economies, EC, EUDs, IFIs, Chambers, banks and finance providers as well as a number of SMEs. Several panels were organized to learn more about what WB EDIF has to offer, to hear stories from the companies benefitting under the facility and to discuss the main access to finance challenges.

The Forum was opened by the President of the Chamber of Commerce, Marko Cadez, State Secretary of Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Serbia, Branimir Stojanovic and Head of Cooperation at Dele-gation of the European Union to Serbia, Ingve Engstrom.

A business to finance event was organized in the afternoon, where the SMEs from the Western Balkans had the chance to meet the finance and advisory providers under the WB EDIF.

The 11th edition of the most significant conference of Private Equity and Mergers & Acquisitions opportunities for the Southeast Europe region will be held under the theme “SEE – Still a land of opportunities?” and it has been scheduled for October 2018. The forum will deliver the highest quality content and address the most current topics related to investment opportunities in Private Equity and M&A space.

Founded in 1995 as a s mall bakery shop located in the family house of the newly-married Trivic couple, Krajina Klas has now, 20 years later, grown to 490 employees with EUR 10m in turnover and is the leading producer of bakery and confectionary products in Bosnia Herzegovina.

Find out how WB EDIF’s expansion fund, ENEF, financed this family business in its growth stages.

WBEDIF Succes Stories – Krajina Klas

In 2017 WB EDIF published its first collection of stories from the Region. This booklet also gives a concise overview of the WB EDIF platform and main targets.

The EBRD, in cooperation with the Croatian Employers’ Association (HUP), held a conference in Zagreb today to introduce the Enterprise Expansion Fund (ENEF), a regional private equity fund focused on development and expansion capital.

Read the full EBRD press release here

What is ENEF?

Managed and advised by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and investing since 2016, the Enterprise Expansion Fund (ENEF) finances established SMEs with high growth potential to support the development and expansion of their businesses. In particular ENEF aims to identify local and regional champions – market leaders with good growth prospects – and provide them with the financing they need to take them to the next level.

This toolkit is aimed at releasing investment opportunities and unlocking commercial and funding potential in intangible and intellectual property (IP) assets in the Western Balkans. The toolkit provides a mixture of educational material, templates and resources that will enable SMEs to understand the importance of IP and implement suitable IP processes and strategies for their specific circumstances.

With the investment ENEF will become an equity holder in EECF, the ultimate owner of Trgovački centar Max Stoja d.o.o., a limited liability company incorporated in Croatia for the purpose of the development and management of a state of the art retail and entertainment centre in Pula. Read more

The first informal meeting of the Investment Committee of ENEF was held in Belgrade on the 6th of May 2014. The representatives of the Investment Advisor held discussions with the members of the IC with the objective of preparing the ground for the first investments.