Austrian politician praises mezzanine to support SMEs

Kim Richters
29 July 2013

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Sonja Zwazl, president of the federal economic chamber of lower Austria, has called for more mezzanine financing to support local SMEs, according to local press reports.

Stating the economic crisis and the hesitation of banks to give away loans as reasons why many potential founders shy away from starting up or expanding a business, Zwazl hopes the increase of available mezzanine funding will help kick-start Austria's small and mid-market economy. She made the comments as part of a speech in the Austrian parliament, according to press reports.

In an interview with unquote" in February this year, Jürgen Marchart, managing director of the Austrian Private Equity and Venture Capital Organisation (AVCO), spoke about the difficulties for companies to raise capital from banks. In addition, an oft-cited study by business information platform Dun & Bradstreet revealed that 45,000 businesses were founded across Austria in 2012.

According to unquote" data, there are 17 European mezzanine funds (having raised a collective €11.9bn) currently in their investment period that could potentially target Austrian businesses.

Zwazl was not yet available for comment.