Parliament endorsed Friday an increase of the Bulgarian share in the Black Sea Trade and Development Bank (BSTDB). Bulgaria's participation is increased by subscription of 135,000 shares with a face value of 1,000 special drawing rights (SDR).

Bulgaria is among the BSTDB founders with a 13.5 per cent share in the authorized capital. Bulgaria's membership in the bank enables the country to participate in joint infrastructure projects under the Black Sea Economic Cooperation (BSEC) and to influence their funding and implementation.

At end 2007, the Board of Directors of BSTDB decided to increase the bank's authorized capital by 2,000 million SDR. The proposal included an offering to shareholders of SDR 1 billion for new capital subscriptions, the motivation for tabling the proposal states.

This capital increase will greatly assist the BSTDB in the implementation of its development mandate in the region.

Specifically it will allow the Bank to participate in bigger investment projects and will enhance the terms on which it is able to offer medium to long- term financing to its clients in the member countries.