Japan, willing to invest in Romania

Japan aims to invest in Romania through a co-financing vehicle of the Recovery Equity Fund of Funds, announced Mihai Precup, President of the Agency for Monitoring and Evaluating the Performance of Public Enterprises (AMEPIP).

According to a statement from AMEPIP, the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) already has experience in managing such a fund of funds, which it holds in Poland and which will also be used to co-finance the Recovery Equity Fund (REF) in Romania.

Mihai Precup, President of AMEPIP, met with several representatives of JBIC in Tokyo.

Precup stated that the Japanese financial institution already has experience in managing such a fund of funds, which it holds in Poland and which will be used to co-finance the Recovery Equity Fund (REF) in Romania.

“JBIC representatives have expressed interest in co-financing the Fund of Funds, an instrument for financing startups worth 400 million euros managed by the Romanian Government together with the European Investment Fund. This source of funding targets various categories of funds: infrastructure funds, private equity funds, venture capital funds, or crowdfunding platforms. The experience in managing such a fund of funds in Poland will be used as a vehicle for co-financing projects in our country, with the Romanian side responsible for conducting a preliminary analysis,” said the AMEPIP President at the end of the meeting with JBIC officials.

Also at the meeting in Tokyo, representatives of the Japanese financial institution “expressed interest in purchasing yen-denominated bonds, known as Samurai Bonds, through which Romania will be able to diversify its sources to cover financing needs,” the statement added. The first yen-denominated bonds are planned to be launched in 2024.

It is worth recalling that as early as December 2021, the Romanian Government and the European Investment Fund signed a contract to establish the Recovery Equity Fund of Funds, an investment funded with a 400 million euro contribution from Component 9 of the PNRR – “Support for the private sector, research, development, and innovation.”

It is anticipated that by 2026, approximately 20 private investment funds will obtain resources to invest in Romanian firms.