Bahrain Liquidity Support Fund begins receiving applications
The Liquidity Support Fund (LSF) began receiving applications for the financing of private sector companies and establishments on 1 July. Applications opened for large companies, with an annual income of BHD3 million and above, until 1 August through the nbbonline.com website.
The BHD100 million fund, which was first announced in December 2019, is designed to support working capital requirements of viable companies, particularly SMEs, that are experiencing genuine short term liquidity pressures.
The LSF was launched in cooperation with the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry and Bahrain Labour Fund (Tamkeen), with the co-operation with contributing banking institutions, including the National Bank of Bahrain, the Bank of Bahrain and Kuwait, the Bahrain Islamic Bank, and the Bahrain Development Bank.
The application criteria for large companies includes: holding an active commercial registration, carrying out commercial activities in Bahrain for four consecutive years and enjoying a positive financial solvency in addition to providing audited financial statements for the fiscal years 2018-2019, internal financial reports for the year 2020, provisional balance sheets for part of 2021 and a positive profit margin for 2019.
Eligible companies should be active in sectors as stipulated by Decision No 47 of 2021 issued by the Labour and Social Development Minister.
