From August 1, 2025, the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Foundation (EIF) significantly increased the scope of corporate loan guarantees for project volumes of 5–10 million euros — the support rate will increase from the current level of 50% to 70% of the loan amount. The exception is the construction sector, where the maximum guarantee is 60%. In addition, the EIF received the right to offer guarantees for loans over 10 million.

Kaarel Aus, Head of the EIF Loans and Guarantees Department, said: “InvestEU reinsurance allows us to take greater risks in larger projects. This will improve companies' access to financing, but also promote innovation. Among other things, we can now support the defense industry in the case of dual-use, which is an important and growing sector for Estonia.”

According to him, the EIF is ready to intervene in situations where the risk side of commercial banks is too high: “The role of the EIF is to intervene in situations where there is a market failure — companies are helped with their financial services when the risks are too high for commercial banks.”

What does this mean for companies? Entrepreneurs can now apply for more favorable loan conditions for large-scale investments. The increase in the guarantee to 70% and the increase in eligibility for projects over 10 million means that companies that have borrowed from a bank or leasing will receive greater guarantee support from the EIF. This will help to implement projects that would otherwise not be implemented due to banking risk criteria.

As part of the cooperation between the EIF and the European Investment Fund (EIF), the services will be financed through the InvestEU program to ensure that loans and guarantees are more accessible to small businesses in particular.

Context and background EIS was established in 2022 by merging KredEx and Enterprise Estonia and offers loans, guarantees, grants and consultancy to entrepreneurs. Just a year ago, EIS reduced its costs by nearly 3.3 million euros and consolidated its activities to increase efficiency and better support the financing of companies.

At the same time, the large-scale investment support programme launched at the end of last year assumed a project volume of at least 100 million euros, support of up to 15% of the investment price (up to 20 million euros per project) and required the creation of a minimum of 30 jobs with a market-based wage level. This sounds ambitious, but is more suitable for economic volumes in the double-double range.

Why is this important? Increasing the volume of the guarantee shows that the state is ready to take a greater financial risk to support innovation and growth. Small and medium-sized enterprises will gain access to financing that might have previously been unavailable, and will gain alternatives to bank loans. In addition, the EIS also directs its support to the defense industry, whose national importance has grown in recent years.

Summary The decision of the EIS to increase the share of loan guarantees to 70% and to provide guarantees for projects over 10 million will support the implementation of important investments in Estonia. Companies whose risk profile remains too high for commercial banks, including the defense industry, will benefit in particular. This step will strengthen the role of the EIS as a market-capable financial intermediary and contribute to promoting innovation and competitiveness in the Estonian economy.