SMEs, what will CDP do with the French fund October in digital lending
Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and the October digital lending platform join forces to support the growth of Italian SMEs. Facts, numbers and details on the October SME IV alternative finance tool
Cassa Depositi e Prestiti and the October digital lending platform join forces to support the growth of Italian SMEs and Small-Mid Caps. Here are all the details.
THE NUMBERS OF CDP'S INVESTMENT IN THE OCTOBER FUND
CDP's investment (20 million euros invested in the October SME IV fund) brings the fund's commitment to over 134 million euros (out of a target of 250 million euros) with the aim of supporting Italian companies in accessing to credit October SME IV is a pan-European private debt fund for SMEs and Small-Mid Cap, reads a note from the Cdp group (controlled by the Ministry of Economy and participated by banking foundations)
THE NUMBERS OF THE OCTOBER SME IV FUND
The October SME IV fund is an alternative finance instrument aimed at facilitating access to credit for SMEs and Small-Mid Cap, reminds the Cassa. The 20 million euro investment in the October SME IV fund, promoted by the French October Factory SA, is in addition to the nearly 115 million euro made available by various institutional investors at European level, including the French public investment bank ( Bpifrance, controlled by the French CDP), the European Investment Fund (EIF) and the Spanish Official Credit Institute (ICO).
WHAT IS OCTOBER
October is the European financing platform for SMEs. In 2018, October ranked for the third consecutive year among the top 100 fintechs in the ranking prepared by KPMG and H2 Ventures and is supported among others by Partech, CNP Assurances, Matmut, Allianz, Idinvest, CIR Spa and Decaux Frères Investissements. In September 2019 October was included in the list of Next40, the 40 French start-ups with the highest growth potential.
HOW THE OCTOBER PLATFORM WORKS
October allows SMEs to obtain financing directly from private lenders and institutional investors without going through banks, the press release reads: "Investors put their savings in a useful and profitable way at the service of the real economy and businesses find, in a simple way and new, sources of funding independent of banks. October has already disbursed over 500 million euros to more than 1,100 SME development projects, of different sizes and sectors. October operates in France, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Germany ”. In September 2019 October was included in the list of Next40, the 40 French start-ups with the highest growth potential.
WHAT THE OCTOBER SME IV FUND DOES
October SME IV – expression of the platform – is a long-term European investment fund which is financed by issuing Notes and which grants loans to SMEs and Small-Mid Cap with registered and / or operational headquarters in Italy, as well as in other countries EU in which the October group operates through its digital lending platform. The use of the platform allows companies to obtain financing on the basis of a specific co-financing scheme, thanks to resources from the fund, fed by institutional investors and private lenders who identify in the platform an innovative and interesting investment opportunity that at the same time it helps to support the real economy.
THE PORTFOLIO OF OPERATIONS
Based on the fund's collection target (250 million euros), a portfolio with a total number of transactions exceeding 500 with a size of between 30 thousand and 5 million euros is expected. The fund's intervention approach, which undertakes to use in Italy an amount equal to at least double the investment made by Cdp, is consistent with CDP's 2019-2021 Business Plan which provides for specific lines of action to support SMEs and Small-Mid Caps, especially in this period of restart following the epidemiological emergency.
THE COMMENT OF CALCAGNINI (CDP)
Paolo Calcagnini, Chief Business Officer of Cassa Depositi e Prestiti, commented: "With the investment in the October SME IV Fund, Cdp continues its support plan for Italian SMEs and Small-Mid Caps, in particular after the serious health emergency that hit our country. The investment in diversified credit funds, which flanks the Basket Bond operations, has the objective of reaching companies which, due to their size or specific intervention, cannot be reached by CDP directly. We are also convinced that CDP's investment in a fund linked to a digital lending platform can encourage investment in this asset class by other institutional investors ”.
THE WORDS OF ZOCCHI (OCTOBER ITALIA)
Sergio Zocchi, managing director of October Italy, commented: "Being supportive to companies is part of our DNA, but never as in these complex months and in view of the next ones, have we felt the responsibility and pride to create the conditions to amplify the reach of our platform. The choice of CDP, which confirms its vision of innovation, translates into the possibility for many more companies to resort to financing instruments complementary to traditional channels, capable of responding quickly to the demand for resources, which are now more crucial than ever. to overcome the contingency and start growing again ”. “ October works in partnership with banks, such as IntesaSanPaolo, to integrate the banking offer with more flexible services”, added Zocchi to Sole 24 Ore .
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/economia/pmi-cosa-fara-cdp-nel-fondo-francese-october-nel-digital-lending/ on Fri, 22 Jan 2021 10:24:00 +0000.