The “European Defense” narrative is moving from political rhetoric to bankable reality.
Piraeus Bank has become the first lender in Greece to sign a strategic agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB), securing up to €100 million in funding specifically targeting small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the defense and cybersecurity sectors.
🛡️ THE LEVERAGE EFFECT: While the EIB commitment is €100M, the impact is double.
- Total Liquidity: CEO Christos Megalou confirmed that by leveraging these funds, the bank will provide €200 million in financing to the market.
- Target Audience: “A few hundred” Greek SMEs active in Cybersecurity and Dual-Use Technology.
- Precedent: This follows a similar deal signed by Deutsche Bank in June, signaling a pan-European trend of commercial banks re-risking the defense sector.
🇬🇷 THE NATIONAL STRATEGY: This facility is the financial plumbing required to make Greece’s procurement strategy work.
- The Budget: Greece plans to spend €28 billion on arms procurement by 2035.
- The “25% Rule”: The government has mandated that 25% of this spend must go to domestic companies. Without access to working capital and capex financing (like this EIB facility), local SMEs would struggle to scale up to meet that demand.
💡 ANALYST TAKEAWAY: For years, “ESG” criteria made defense financing a taboo for many commercial lenders. The EIB’s pivot—pledging at least €3 billion to the sector—provides the “Regulatory Cover” commercial banks needed to re-enter the space. Piraeus Bank is the first mover in Athens, but with the EIB confirming active discussions with other Greek lenders, we are witnessing the creation of a specialized “Defense Banking” ecosystem in Southern Europe.
👇 Defense Contractors: Is access to capital still the biggest bottleneck for scaling production in Europe, or has the situation improved in 2026?