Export credit agency, Sace, has provided a €30mn loan to Turkish leasing company Aklease, which will be used to finance imports of investment goods from Italy and provide longer tenor loans.

Ak Finansal Kiralama (Aklease), Turkey’s leading financial leasing company, secured the loan with a six-year maturity, which will now see the firm able to offer longer-term financing, helping to increase bilateral transactions between Turkey and Italy.

Commenting on the deal, Aklease CEO, Salih Tuncer Mutlucan, says: “We are glad to be offering the long-term financing in co-operation with Sace at favourable terms to the Turkish investors.”

Sace country manager, Yeliz Tüfekçioğlu, says the loan shows Sace’s confidence not only in Aklease but in the Turkish economy. Tüfekçioğlu adds: “Turkey is among the highest priority markets for Sace; that’s why we are very happy to be contributing to the boosting of the business and trade volume between the two countries.”

Sace officials expressed their wish to continue creating tailored solutions together with Aklease and implement more Sace-guaranteed loans to other Turkish companies “which have or plan to have sound commercial relations with Italy”, says Francesca Di Ottavio, senior credit expert in Sace’s large enterprises department.

ING Commercial Banking mediated the credit loan.