The institution has financed 470 companies to the tune of €478.7 million, a volume in line with its pre-pandemic operations. Forty per cent of the funding was earmarked for ESG purposes. Loans for 159 companies were restructured in an amount of €116.7 million. The ICF’s CEO, Vanessa Servera, points out that “when a customer gets into difficulties, we seek to keep the business going by helping to arrange an agreement between the firm and the banking pool.” In venture capital, €67.8 million was invested via six funds run by external managers and in 23 companies directly by the ICF.
The ICF Group has recorded a total volume of operations coming to €663.2 million in 2022, a figure which includes new business in loans and guarantees, credit restructuring and venture capital investment. The public financial institution today presented its 2022 results at a press conference held at the ICF’s headquarters.
The ICF’s CEO, Vanessa Servera, said during the presentation that “after 2020 and 2021, two years in which we closed an above-average volume of transactions due to funding designed to mitigate the impact of Covid-19, in 2022 we reduced our operations to post a funding volume in line with pre-pandemic years.” In 2022, the ICF financed 470 companies for an amount of €478.7 million, helping to maintain or create 25,746 jobs. In terms of restructuring, 159 businesses’ loans have been reworked in an amount of €116.7 million. “When a customer gets into difficulties, we seek to keep the business going by helping to arrange an agreement between the firm and the banking pool,” noted Servera.
She pointed out that “40% of the new loans and guarantees was earmarked for ESG purposes.” The institution has disbursed €152 million to fund projects unlocking the green transition and another €38 million for initiatives promoting social housing.
By sectors, funding for the agri-food industry and the primary sector (16.3%), manufacturing industries (15.6%) and trade, tourism and transport (14.5%) stands out in particular. The industrial sector is the institution’s key target in line with its goal of driving Catalonia’s reindustrialisation.
As for geographical breakdown, the institution allocates its business in line with each region’s contribution to Catalonia’s GDP. This means that Barcelona and its area of influence account for the bulk of lending at 62.5% of investment. The Girona region at 11.7% and the Lleida region at 8% come next by greatest investment volume. “Looking to boost the economy across Catalonia, we’ve found that in general the percentage of lending activity per region is higher than the percentage of GVA generated by each of them,” Servera pointed out.
Increase in venture capital business
In 2022, €67.8 million was invested through six external fund managers and in 23 companies directly by the ICF, a higher investment volume than in previous years. This increase is mainly down to commitments to external funds, which have risen by 162% compared to 2021. Overall, the institution has committed €52.1 million in venture capital funds in the seed, development and growth segments.
“Twenty three per cent of venture capital investment has been injected directly through funds managed by the ICF with our own investment criteria and the institution’s team,” noted Servera. Through ICF Capital funds, €12.6 million has been pumped into digital start-ups and industrial businesses. Digital, ecommerce and ICT enterprises have also been the main recipients of IFEM Innovació’s equity loans which have furnished investment coming to €3.1 million.
Financial indicators: balance sheet and results
The ICF closed the 2022 financial year with provisional net income standing at €27.4 million. Servera pointed out that “our gross interest margin has improved owing to the evolution of the Euribor and the upward trend in dividends earned from venture capital investments.” The profit consolidates a 12-year cycle of positive results. “We currently have a stable, robust and balanced balance sheet and we fund over 4,500 companies in a total amount of €2.39 billion,” she added.
In terms of the other financial indicators and in line with previous years, the ICF has a solvency ratio of 39.4% and an NPL coverage ratio coming to 139%. Both ratios are well above the minimum required by credit institution regulations and the industry average. The Group ended the year with a 7.5% NPL ratio compared to 8.2% in the previous year. “Notwithstanding the strong performance of NPLs, we’ve upped provisions in order to maintain a prudent risk management policy against a backdrop of future uncertainty,” commented Servera.
About the ICF
The ICF is Catalonia’s public development bank and as such its main mission is to foster the growth of businesses and organisations. It uses loans and equity to fund significant transformational projects with a special emphasis on the green transition, reindustrialisation and social housing. It often operates alongside commercial banking by offering long repayment terms to make it easier to pay off the debt. Since 2014 it has been a member of the European Association of Public Banks (EAPB) which brings together most of the public banks and financial institutions operating in Europe.
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