Kaunas, Lithuania-based surimi producer Viciunai Group has agreed to a EUR 20 million (USD 22.3 million) loan with Austria-headquartered Raiffeisen Bank International AG, with the funds to go towards improving its business efficiency and competitiveness in western European markets.
This is Viciunai’s first funding agreement of this scope in the region, with the company saying it would help to further its sustainable funding strategy by diversifying its sources.
It also revealed ongoing discussions with other potential funders in Europe.
“In recent years, the business has grown very rapidly,” Viciunai Group CEO Sarunas Matijosaitis said. “In 2018, the sales exceeded EUR 530 million [USD 590.1 million], and we are planning to pass the EUR 600 million [USD 668.1 million] mark this year. Such growth requires a lot of investment to product development, new technologies, and sustainable business. That is why we need a balanced loan portfolio with competitive cost and diversified risk.”
Viciunai sells products in more than 70 countries worldwide, with the quickest growth now being seen in European Union markets, where it competes with large producers from France, Spain, and other countries. Up until this loan agreement with Raiffeisen, its western Europe business had been entirely funded by Lithuanian banks, despite the company’s revenue in Lithuania accounting for less than 6 percent of total sales.
Raiffeisen Bank’s Head of Corporate Customers Daniel Rath praised the company’s growth in a statement.
“Our bank is focused on sustainable relationships with partners. We see a potential in growing together with Viciunai Group in our main markets, offering other modern-banking services along with the funding,” Rath said.
Photo courtesy of Slavko Sereda/Shutterstock
