The European Reconstruction and Development Bank (ERDB), the European Investments Bank (EIB) and the World Bank (WB) decided to invest some 24.5 billion Euros in the Central and Eastern Europe zone, an ERDB press release informs. The institutions will support the banking operations in the region and will offer support for activities affected by the global crisis.

The initiative adds up on the national measures to rise above the crisis and will involve fast and coordinated financial assistance responses, especially for small and medium enterprises, through private banking groups. The financial aid will include credit lines, issuing shares or corporate bonds, as well as insurance for political risks, the release informs.

The plan will be applied between 2009 and 2010. "We believe firmly that with the significant and coordinated support by (international financial institutions), bank groups, governments across Europe and European institutions, financial sectors in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe will pass the test of the global financial crisis and emerge from it healthier and stronger," the release reads.