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Banca March finances sustainable hotel projects to the sum of €100 million

15 March 2022 Category: Sustainability

Banca March aims to use this line of financing to back investment work still being done by companies in spite of the economic crisis caused by the pandemic.

  • Banca March relies on its specialisation and leadership in the hotel and tourism sector to consolidate itself as a benchmark for sustainable bank financing.  
  • The companies that can benefit from this line are hotel SMEs (small & medium enterprises) with investment projects that involve energy savings or improving the energy rating of their assets.  
  • Transactions signed under this new line will be counter-guaranteed by the EIF.  
  • To complement this financing, Banca March is providing its customers with a service for processing and managing grants from European funds through an agreement the bank has signed with PwC.  
  • In 2021, Banca March took part in 14 ESG loan transactions under its club or joint modality for a sum of €122 million in multiple business sectors, including the hotel sector.

Banca March offers hotel businesses a line of financing worth €100 million for investment projects that aim to reduce CO2 emissions. Transactions signed under this line will be counter-guaranteed by the European Investment Fund (EIF) through the guarantee agreement that Banca March has in place with that European institution.

The companies that can benefit from this line of financing are hotel SMEs (small & medium enterprises) that submit projects related to energy saving or improving the energy ratings of their assets, such as installing solar panels for own consumption, charging stations for electric vehicles, solar pergolas, replacing oil boilers, improving insulation, using more efficient systems to heat pools, etc.

The Spanish hotel industry is especially committed to conservation of the environment and has been carrying out actions to generate a positive impact on the destinations where it operates, as a worldwide benchmark for sustainability. Banca March aims to use this line of financing to back investment work still being done by companies in spite of the economic crisis caused by the pandemic. This support is especially relevant at a time when administrations are starting to require these kinds of actions, such as with the recent Balearic Tourism Act.

To complement this financing, Banca March is providing its customers, through an agreement the bank has signed with PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), with a service for processing and managing grants from European funds. The value proposition comprises a full range of services, including a grant search engine, advisory service regarding applicable grants or eligibility analysis and standard, premium or ad-hoc processing, depending on the project's degree of complexity.

Banca March, a fully family-owned business from the Balearic Islands, relies on its specialisation in advising companies and its leadership in the hotel and tourism sector to consolidate itself as a benchmark for sustainable bank financing. In 2021, Banca March took part in 14 ESG (using environment, social and governance criteria) loan transactions under its club or joint modality for a sum of €122 million in multiple business sectors, including the hotel sector.

Rafael Ferragut, the head of the Tourism and Leisure unit at Banca March, said, "For more than 90 years and faithful to its unwavering philosophy of Shared Growth with customers, employees, shareholders and society as a whole, one of Banca March's main goals is to drive sustainable investment and financing that respects the environment and people. After a very complicated couple of years for the hotel and tourism sector, it is time to start up projects for renewing and updating facilities, and Banca March aims to be by the side of its customers, as it has been throughout the worst moments of the crisis. Our specialisation in advising companies and our leadership in the hotel and tourism sector make us the best travel companions for hotel businesses."

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