The European Union (EU) could immediately provide between 28 billion EUR and 40 billion EUR to support small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) affected by the coronavirus pandemic, says a letter to the European Finance Ministers of the European Investment Bank (EIB).

But such assistance would not be enough to calm the financial markets. The letter calls for a “significant additional guarantee” from EU governments that the EIB could use to provide open access to finance for SMEs.

The letter, sent late Sunday, also states that economic activity in Europe stalled as a result of government decisions to curb the spread of the virus and social behavior.

“The resulting economic damage is immediate and widespread”, wrote in the letter the EIB President Werner Hoyer. “We need a strong European response to the coronavirus crisis. The immediate economic and financial dynamic is nearing its peak. If Europe is to prove its worth in this situation, it must act together”, added he.

In the meantime, European finance ministers are holding a video conference on new paths to respond to the economic damage caused by the pandemic, and they will discuss and the role of the EIB is to address these challenges.

Re-prioritizing and redirecting money already prepared by the EIB and diverting some of the funds now used as a guarantee for the EU investment scheme will together generate 28 billion EUR, the EIB said.

Another 12 billion EUR would come from the release of an additional 1.5 billion EUR from the EU budget and the EIB balance sheet under the European Fund for Strategic Investment Scheme, the bank added.