Spain: in Palencia, loans to young entrepreneurs

The town Council of Palencia (Castilla-León) and this saving bank have recently reached an agreement to favour both the generation of self-employment and the emergence of new enterprises and entrepreneurs through the granting of a number of special micro-loans. Both modalities aim at the development of self-employment, innovation and new business projects so that youngsters do not have to leave the city or the region. The first modality is called ?Microcrédito emprenedor? and is addressed at under 35 year-olds with business initiative. The maximum amount to be funded for each project is 60,000 _, which will have to be returned with an interest rate of 5.5% after a maximum period of 6 years. Conventional bank guarantees are not required. The second modality pursues the self-employment of individuals with difficulties to have access to ordinary bank products. The maximum amount offered is 18,000 _, which will have to be returned with an interest rate of 4.5% after a period of 5 years. www.cajaduero.es/home.asp