The Hague-based merchant bank NIBC may become the first Dutch bank to take advantage of the government’s €200bn guarantee scheme for inter-bank loans, the Financieele Dagblad reports on Friday.

CEO Jeroen Drost said the bank has to refinance debt of around €3.7bn this year and in 2009, the paper reports.
‘We are looking into whether we should take advantage of the scheme and under what conditions,’ Drost told the FD.
NIBC booked third-quarter earnings of €45m, down 37% on the same period in 2007. It pulled out of the US mortgage market in August 2007.
The state guarantee is separate to the government’s €20bn fund for capital injections, of which €13.75bn has gone to ING, Aegon and SNS Reaal.
For previous story on the guarantee scheme, click here