Nokia loaned the equivalent of over $584 million from the European Investment Bank in order to continue financing its research into the fifth generation of mobile networks, the Finnish company said Monday. The crediting line was approved by the European Union’s nonprofit institution as part of the European Fund for Strategic Investments and has a five-year average maturity following the period of disbursement planned to take place over the next 18 months, the telecom giant confirmed. Nokia described the development as yet another step in its long-term effort to create and maintain a leading position in the emerging 5G field with a comprehensive package of products and services meant to enable the next generation of connectivity.
While 5G will allow for faster wireless speeds and lower latencies like every generation of mobile service technologies that came before it, the new solution is unique by virtue of the fact that it’s been purpose-built for potentially revolutionary hardware and software designed for self-driving cars, remote surgeries, 4K broadcasts, and a wide variety of other applications. As a result, the new connectivity standard is likely to benefit the global economy faster than the previous generations of mobile services did. Nokia is doing what it can to be on the forefront of that wireless revolution, hence its aggressive investments in the field that now warranted taking on an additional loan. EU officials said the new crediting line for Nokia was approved in part because the two entities share a common vision for the future of mobile connectivity, i.e. agree that 5G will have a major economic role to play in the future.
Nokia has been involved in 5G testing across the United States and Europe for several years now, having already partnered with telecom juggernauts such as Verizon and T-Mobile. Earlier this month, the company also announced a major 5G accessibility push, capping its licensing at approximately $3.50 per connected device in hopes of differentiating itself from its rivals.