European Investment Bank Says It Won’t Be Part of Rescue Fund

The European Investment Bank said it doesn’t expect to be linked to the European Financial Stability Facility, the euro area’s main crisis rescue fund.

The bank won’t be used as part of a special purpose vehicle in connection with the rescue fund, the EIB said in a statement today on its website. The Luxembourg-based European Investment Bank is the European Union’s arm for financing investment projects like energy and road networks.

“The EIB has not been approached and has no plans to be involved in this,” the statement said. “The EIB will continue to focus on its mission which is financing viable investment projects.”

European officials including French Finance Minister Francois Baroin and EU Monetary Affairs Commissioner Olli Rehn have said governments are looking at ways to leverage the region’s bailout program. They have not specified what mechanism might be used to provide that leverage, saying only that the goal would be to erect a “firewall” around the sovereign debt crisis once a revamp of the fund is completed.

To contact the reporters on this story: Rebecca Christie in Brussels at rchristie4@bloomberg.net;

To contact the editors responsible for this story: James Hertling at jhertling@bloomberg.net;