ICO has hosted in Madrid the biannual High Level Meeting of senior representatives of NEFI member institutions. 

The meeting served as a forum to discuss existing partnerships between NEFI members and EU institutions, and to explore new ways in which the current collaboration can be extended and reinforced. Participants at the meeting also included the Vice President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), Mr Román Escolano, the Chief Executive of the European Investment Fund (EIF), Mr Pier Luigi Gilibert, and the European Commission's Director for Finance, coordination with EIB group, EBRD and IFIs, Mr Burkhard Schmidt.

The Network comprises the leading national financial institutions of 16 EU Member States which share a public mission to facilitate the access to finance for SMEs by offering them financial services and expertise, acting complementarily to and in cooperation with their respective national banking systems. 

Ahead of the High Level Meeting, NEFI member institutions adopted a joint statement on the Key role of National Promotional Institutions in access to finance for SMEs.