Philipp Kreutz, member of the management board of German Investment and Development Company (DEG); Herbert Baumgartner, director of DEG representative office in Bangkok; and Ali Reza Ifthekhar, managing director of Eastern Bank (EBL), ink a deal under which EBL will get a loan of $20 million, at the Westin Dhaka on Monday.

The German Investment and Development Company (DEG) has recently extended a long term loan of $20 million to Eastern Bank (EBL) through its offshore banking unit.

The liquidity created out of this USD loan will be utilised to finance small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and industries in export processing zones, EBL said in a statement yesterday.

Philipp Kreutz, member of the management board of DEG; Herbert Baumgartner, director of DEG representative office in Bangkok; and Ali Reza Ifthekhar, managing director of EBL, inked an agreement in this regard at a ceremony at the Westin Dhaka on Monday.

Supporting SME growth in the developing countries is one of DEG's strategic goals, and this facility to EBL will be a milestone to achieve the goal in Bangladesh, said Kreutz.

DEG finances investments of private companies in developing and transition countries.

The Daily Star/Bangladesh/ 18th Jan 2012