The Polish government hopes that the newly implemented state guarantee program for small and medium firms will help generating up to PN 50 billion worth lending, Prime Minister Donald Tusk told a news conference.

"We do not exclude that the value of the credits could eventually reach PLN 50 billion," Tusk said.

The program is an example of "fast and efficient actions aimed at protecting existing jobs and creating new ones," the PM said, welcoming the fact that the program was adopted fast "in order to react at a pace adequate the level of risk."

PM Tusk announced setting up of the program in October 2012 as one of the measures aimed at protecting Polish growth in times of slowdown. In October Poland's state-bank BGK CEO Dariusz Daniluk said the bank can offer PLN 30 billion in portfolio guarantees, which should generate lending of up to PLN 50 billion.

On Monday Daniluk said that BGK has signed five agreements worth up to PLN 4.2 billion with banks in the frame of state guarantee program aimed at boosting lending for SMEs and will sign two additional agreements in two days.

On Monday, agreements were signed with PKO BP BRE Bank, ING BSK and to cooperative banks. ”Within two days additional two agreements will be signed for bank guarantees of up to PLN 1.1 billion with Raiffeisen and Idea Bank," Daniluk said.

Within the framework of the signed agreements, Poland will co-guarantee loans for SME's, taking some of the risk burden away from the commercial banks.