Commerzbank, ING and BNP Paribas are among the main banks that are helping public services with loans so that the population can continue to be supplied with energy. But other well-known financial institutions also have loans on their books.
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Several dozen banks, led by Commerzbank, France’s BNP Paribas and Dutch ING Groep, are turning out to be indirect beneficiaries of the government bailouts of European energy suppliers. The trio is represented in all four utilities with loans that have been bailed out with taxpayer money, Bloomberg News reports.
The data collected by Bloomberg show a total of around 30 banks that have made around eleven billion euros available to suppliers in difficulty, such as the Düsseldorf gas supplier Uniper, through revolving credit lines. Bailout packages for companies hit by the energy crisis can help these banks avoid large write-downs on these loans.
Banks have lent money to various utilities
Avoid system crises
“Governments cannot allow energy companies to go bankrupt right now,” said Elisabeth Rudman, head of DBRS Ratings European financial institutions group. “During the coronavirus, government measures have been incredibly favorable to the economy and, by extension, to banks.”
Last month, the ECB wrote to supervised banks asking them to analyze the impact of a gas ban on their businesses. Responses are expected to be sent in mid-September and follow-up discussions are expected to take place by the end of this month.
The exact extent of the exposure to energy companies is unclear as the companies did not disclose the amount of loans disbursed. The full list of banks also includes Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs Group, Morgan Stanley, Société Générale and UniCredit, according to the energy companies. (aa)
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