EBRD launches fund for young Turkish entrepreneurs

ISTANBUL

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has said that it is launching a funding program of 250 million euros ($287.7 million) for young entrepreneurs in Türkiye, after implementing similar programs in 12 other countries.

“The initiative is supported by the Turkish government and the European Union (EU) and aims to provide financial assistance, know-how and non-financial business development services to people under the age of 35,” according to a bank statement.

The EBRD’s Youth in Business program will provide financing, technical cooperation, and risk sharing to financial institutions partnered in Türkiye, which will then use the resources provided to issue loans to micro, small and medium enterprises managed by young entrepreneurs, it said.

The program’s Türkiye arm is also focused on allocating 70 percent of the total financing to be provided to businesses in the country’s southeast, the area that was hit by the massive February 2023 earthquakes, to mitigate the economic impact of the disaster.

Speaking at the launch event in Istanbul, Francis Malige, the EBRD’s Managing Director for Financial Institutions, said: “Türkiye’s greatest asset is its youth, so I am confident that the Youth in Business program will make a great home for itself among the country’s creative, dynamic, resilient young entrepreneurs.”

The launch event also witnessed the commitment of the first cohort of Turkish partner institutions, with Akbank, Şekerbank and TEB committing to be part of the program.