EBRD expects 50% capital boost

- The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) plans to boost its capital by 50% by 2015, as well as the investments in the countries where it is active - the EBRD's President Thomas Mirow said on Monday (January 25, 2010).

The bank's investments in 30 countries of the region, which stretches from Central Europe to Central Asia and includes Serbia, were increased in response to the crisis from EUR 5.2 billion in 2008 to EUR 8.2 billion EUR in 2009.

Thomas Mirow said to the press in the bank's headquarters in London that he hoped the next annual EBRD meeting of shareholder countries, in Zagreb in May, would approve increasing capital from its current level of EUR 20 billion to EUR 30 billion.

The bank also wanted to increase its annual investment from EUR 8.5 billion to EUR 9 billion between 2010 and 2015, Mirow said.

Mirow also said he was "fairly optimistic" that consensus could be reached.

He said he found it remarkable that the economic crisis had not caused any major political setbacks.

- Historic experience has shown that when societies undergo severe crises there is a risk of political unrest - he said and added that the growth in investment was needed "in order to prevent any political destabilisation in the region".

Last week the EBRD raised its 2010 gross domestic product growth forecast for the ex-Soviet bloc countries in which it invests -- which were badly hit by the economic crisis -- from 2.5% to 3.3%.

The EBRD investment zone, which comprises 30 countries and was one of the areas worst hit by the global economic crisis, shrank by six percent in 2009.

The area, which also includes Serbia, Mongolia, Romania, and Turkmenistan, was forecast to grow by 3.8% in 2011, the London-based bank said last week.

EBRD Evropska banka za obnovu i razvoj Beograd

EBRD

Thomas Mirow

London

Zagreb