Governor Mehmeti assessed that bank lending is continuing to contribute to economic growth

The Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, Mr. Fehmi Mehmeti, said that the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund continues to make a major contribution to the economic development of the country.

At the signing ceremony of the agreement between this institution and KFW, Governor Mehmeti estimated that the grant in the amount of 6 million Euros, will enable further increase of the guarantee capacity of KCGF, making it possible to increase the number of beneficiaries of guarantees issued by this institution, so that a larger number of individuals or businesses with difficulty in accessing credit financing, will be able to provide easy access to this source of financing.

“Bank lending continues to be a very important and sustainable source of private sector financing in Kosovo. The value of bank loans by September 2021 has reached 3.57 billion euros, marking a significant annual increase of 12.2%. However, despite the satisfactory trend of increasing bank lending, it is considered that the level of financial intermediation in Kosovo continues to be below the average of the countries in the region, which shows that, in relation to the size of the economy, there is further room for expansion of the lending activity “, said Governor Mehmeti.

The Governor further said that he expects that in addition to supporting the growth of credit financing in general, the KCGF portfolio, more and more to reflect the increase of credit support for sectors with greater difficulties in accessing credit financing, but which have potential to make a significant contribution to the economic development of the country.