The Institut Català de Finances (ICF) is the Government of Catalonia’s public development bank. Its mission is to meet the financing and investment needs of the business and social community to drive the growth and transformation of the Catalan economy and add to the private financial sector.
The ICF funds investment projects, projects or capital for companies and self-employed individuals with registered or operational headquarters in Catalonia by means of loans, guarantees or investment in venture capital.
The ICF does not fund individuals, except in the case of the capitalisation of companies where the holder of the financing may be an individual shareholder, whether current or new.
To apply for funding, you can create an account or log in to Espai Client, the ICF’s online banking, where you will find our loan and guarantee catalogue. If you have any questions or need further information, please feel free to get in touch with us.
The ICF provides long-term funding with the aim of tailoring the loan to the maturity of the investment and the company’s business plan. The ICF can offer loans with advantageous conditions for certain purposes in partnership with Catalan government ministries and European institutions. The ICF can furnish guarantees for financial institutions to make it easier for companies to secure credit.
Any company or institution with registered or operational headquarters in Catalonia can apply regardless of its size or sector of activity. Also eligible are self-employed individuals to finance their economic activity.
Yes. The financial terms may vary depending on the project and the company’s rating.
The ICF does not provide grants. In some cases, depending on the product requested and due to the participation of the Catalan Government or co-financing from European funds and organisations, the loan or guarantee awarded may involve public aid when the financial terms of the loan or guarantee are better than those that the beneficiary would get without this support.
No. The ICF does not arrange leasing.
Yes. The ICF may furnish guarantees for financial institutions to make it easier for companies to secure credit. The ICF’s guarantee operations are conducted jointly with the reciprocal guarantee company Avalis de Catalunya, SGR.
Yes. ICF creates, manages and participates in venture capital instruments (link) as a means of strategic funding and supporting the growth of enterprises on a complementary basis through coinvestment with the private sector. This is especially the case in instruments focusing on seed/start-up capital, development and expansion/growth capital, through its own fund manager (ICF Capital) and in partnership with private managers.
Contact ICF’s venture capital area or one of the independent specialist managers depending on your investment segment: seed/start-up capital, development capital or expansion/growth capital.
No. The ICF does not offer ICO lines as it has its own funding solutions. However, the two institutions’ products are not incompatible and may even complement each other depending on the company’s funding requirements.
Both the ICF and the ICO are public development banks. The ICO’s scope of action is the whole of Spain while the ICF’s operations are restricted to Catalonia. At present, most of the ICF’s operations are performed directly, i.e. financing companies without the intervention of a private banking institution. In contrast, the ICO carries out the bulk of its business by means of mediation lines through private banks.
No. The ICF does not refinance companies’ debt with other institutions or pre-existing debt. The ICF’s financial products are primarily aimed at financing new investments by companies and organisations to help them grow their business.
For companies with sizeable external debt, ICF offers the option of recapitalising the company via loans to shareholders (existing or new) to enable them to increase the company’s capital and enhance its financial structure and solvency.
The ICF’s focus is on project and investment financing. Business projects may include working capital expenses. If you have any questions about whether we can finance your project, please get in touch with us.
To offer funding on good terms while maintaining its solvency and ensuring outstanding public service, the ICF has to charge interest to its customers. Interest is set based on the ICF’s structural costs, the cost at which the ICF is financed and the risk profile of the customer and the transaction. We have financing facilities that are offered at an interest rate below the market price as a result of partnerships with the Government of Catalonia, the European Union and other organisations.
Most of the ICF’s prices are benchmarked to the 12-month EURIBOR rate, which is linked to the official interest rates set by the European Central Bank. For some of our products we also offer fixed rates throughout the entire life of the transaction. Variable rate loans are reviewed annually and the benchmark rate is updated.
The ICF is mainly financed by borrowing from Spanish and European public and private financial institutions and entities.
The ICF is not funded by the Catalan Government’s budget. It is classified by the Bank of Spain as a non-monetary financial institution and ratified by Eurostat as a financial institution outside the perimeter of public administration (ESA).
For these reasons, the bulk of the ICF’s operations do not add any deficit or debt to the Government of Catalonia.