The Council of Europe Development Bank

Established on April 16, 1956, the Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB) is a multilateral development bank with a social vocation. Initially set up to as one of the solutions to the problems of refugees, the CEB is the oldest pan-European supranational financial institution. All its 40 member states are member of the Council of Europe.1 Its scope of action has progressively widened to other sectors of action, directly contributing to strengthening social cohesion in Europe. The CEB is a major instrument of the policy of solidarity in Europe, in order to help its 40 member states achieve sustainable and equitable growth. Since 2012, two of the three rating agencies downgraded the CEB from AAA to AA+, as a consequence of the downgrading of many CEB member countries and borrowers.2