Thursday
June 16
2022

Press Release: DFC Approves $1.4 Billion for Projects that Advance Development Impact Across Africa, Asia, Eastern Europe, and Latin America and the Caribbean

The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) Board of Directors this quarter approved several key transactions that use debt financing and equity investments to support U.S. national security and foreign policy priorities.

This quarter DFC also approved 22 other projects at the Corporation level, focusing on development priorities such as food security, climate change, gender equity, and increasing access to financing around the world. Together, the DFC projects approved this quarter total more than $1.4 billion.

“The diverse set of transactions announced today will make real impact across a range of sectors and development challenges,” said DFC CEO Scott Nathan. “These transactions showcase how DFC strategically catalyzes private capital where it matters most. I want to thank the Board for their work and support for these deals.”

DFC’s Board of Directors this quarter approved the following transactions:

  • Growing agricultural resilience across Africa, Latin America, and Asia: An up to $35 million loan guaranty to Root Capital, a nonprofit social lender strengthening agribusiness in Latin America, Africa, and Asia, will support loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), enhancing projects tackling climate resilience, adaptation, and mitigation.
  • Increasing access to capital in Sri Lanka: A $100 million direct loan to the Commercial Bank of Ceylon, Sri Lanka’s leading commercial private bank, will expand lending to micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and address the credit gap for women-owned businesses, which represent 25% of MSMEs in Sri Lanka.
  • Broadening impactful credit access in Vietnam: An up to $200 million loan to Southeast Asia Commercial Joint Stock Bank will support socioeconomic development in Vietnam, with proceeds addressing the credit gap—particularly for women-owned and women-led SMEs—and the climate crisis.
  • Promoting global financial inclusion: An up to $146.1 million loan to finance a collateralized loan obligation securitization of loans originated, underwritten, and serviced by responsAbility Investments AG, a leading assets manager in sustainable investments, which will enable downstream financing for MSMEs in DFC-eligible countries, providing much-needed capital for underserved communities around the world.
  • Narrowing the finance gap in Nigeria: An up to $280 million loan to Access Bank Plc will address the financing gap for SMEs and advance financial inclusion as the bank commits to supporting women-owned and -led businesses.
  • Supporting innovative entrepreneurship in Africa: An up to $15 million equity investment in Norrsken22 Africa Fund, a women-led fund investing in high-impact technology companies across Africa, will support entrepreneurship and technological advancements in finance, medicine, and education.
  • Integrating critical supply chains in Indonesia: An up to $20 million equity investment in Aruna Global Technologies Pte. Ltd., a fishery supply chain aggregator in Indonesia, will connect small-scale rural fishers to the global market through technology in the second-largest fishing industry in the world, with significant, long-term outcomes including for women in the industry.
  • Supporting agritech and climate solutions in India: An up to $30 million equity investment in Omnivore Agritech & Climate Sustainability Fund 3 will facilitate the provision of risk capital to entrepreneurs focused on improving smallholder farm outcomes, promoting agricultural sustainability, and catalyzing climate resilience.
  • Driving growth capital for West African businesses: An up to $25 million equity investment in Uhuru Growth Fund I-A will drive catalytic capital for consumer-facing sectors such as financial services in lower-income and lower-middle income countries.
  • Supporting women’s economic empowerment in India: An up to $150 million loan to IndusInd Bank Limited will address the economic gender gap in India through expanded microfinance on-lending to low-income, rural women in the three poorest states.
  • Stimulating commercial lending to MSMEs in Egypt: A $100 million Egypt Loan Guaranty Facility 2, a loan guaranty facility for MSMEs, will build upon the success of the prior facility and support expanded lending to underserved communities in Egypt.
  • Scaling the outcomes market to achieve the SDGs: An up to $15 million equity investment in SDG Outcomes Fund SCSp SICAV-RAIF, a fund transforming social and environmental challenges into investible opportunities, will support investments in 15-20 outcomes-based projects, such as impact bonds, focused on health, education, women’s economic empowerment, and the environment, to benefit the world’s most vulnerable populations.

The Corporation this quarter also approved the following transactions:

  • Improving food security in Zambia: A $7.5 million loan to Zambia Lusaka Market Ltd. will support the development of an innovative market system that sources fresh produce from smallholder farmers, decreasing food waste, and improving households’ access to nutritious foods.
  • Strengthening Fair Trade practices in Sri Lanka: A $5 million loan to MA’s Tropical Food Processing (Private) Limited will finance the expansion of a sustainable food company, growing its supplier network while creating new jobs, many of them for women.
  • Supporting agricultural and industrial growth in Mongolia: A $10 million loan to MSM Group LLC, a commercial equipment sales, rental, and leasing company, will help it expand its industrial, agricultural, and commercial vehicle services for businesses in Mongolia.
  • Investing in quality education in Ghana: An $8 million loan to International Community Schools Limited in Ghana will support the expansion of its campus, increasing the enrollment capacity to an additional 500 students over the next five years.
  • Reducing plastic waste in Sri Lanka: A $15 million loan to BPPL Holdings PLC, a polyester yarn manufacturer incorporating recycled plastic materials, will support increased production and strengthen Sri Lanka’s recycling infrastructure.
  • Advancing agribusiness development in Latin America and the Caribbean: A $30 million loan to LAAD Americas N.V. and Agronegocios LAAD, S.A. de C.V., SOFOM E.N.R. will expand credit access for smallholder farmers and SMEs operating in agriculture as well as farm management, renovation, and development.
  • Securing supply chain infrastructure in Georgia: A $4 million loan to Information Communications Systems LLC will support the development, construction, and operation of a regional logistics center that will strengthen supply chains and boost economic development through trade.
  • Promoting sustainable agriculture in Mozambique: A $10 million loan to Eco Farm Moçambique Limitada, an integrated organic sugarcane farm with modern processing, will facilitate the expansion of carbon-neutral sugar production in one of the poorest rural communities in Africa.
  • Bolstering food security in Latin America and Africa: A $10 million loan to Fairtrade Access Fund S.A., SICAV-SIF will support the development of a sustainable agriculture sector by providing working capital, trade finance, and long-term loans to smallholder farmers.
  • Mitigating risk to provide development-focused technical assistance: $8 million in political risk insurance will help enable DAI to implement technical assistance projects in 47 countries to be funded by certain non-governmental, bilateral, and multilateral institutions.
  • Expanding renewable energy to power homes in Kenya: A $20 million loan to Brighter Life Kenya II will create a financing facility to purchase off-grid solar home systems and mobile phones in Kenya.
  • Increasing responsible digital lending in emerging markets worldwide: A $10 million loan to Accial Capital supports additional capital for financial technology companies that are doing digital lending in emerging markets, while using a responsible finance impact lens.
  • Boosting the growth of small enterprises in Armenia: In collaboration with USAID/Armenia, a $4 million loan portfolio guaranty to SEF International UCO LLC will support lending to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) across various sectors, including agriculture.
  • Fostering economic growth in Georgia: An $8.6 million loan to Arazindo LLC will support the establishment of a locally branded hotel and drive international tourism.
  • Incentivizing commercial banks to lend to renewable energy providers in Kosovo: A $7.5 million loan portfolio guaranty to Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund will support downstream lending by commercial banks in Kosovo to MSMEs in the renewable energy sector.
  • Strengthening small enterprises in Palestinian territories: A $2 million increase in a loan portfolio guaranty provided to Palestine Investment Bank through the Middle East Investment Initiative guaranty facility will build upon the success of a previous guaranty to support loans and assistance to small enterprises that demonstrate creditworthiness to private financial institutions.
  • Recycling plastic for production in India: A $9 million loan to Banyan Sustainable Waste Management Private Limited will enable a plastic recycling company, which sources plastic waste from informal channels and converts it into high quality plastic granules, to scale up its production capacity from 15,000 tons per annum to 51,000 tons per annum.
  • Expanding lending to small enterprises in Paraguay: DFC is supporting a $7.5 million loan guaranty to Financiera Finexpar S.A.E.C.A to support underserved SMEs and narrow the credit gap in Paraguay.
  • Furthering small enterprise development in Malawi: A $5 million loan portfolio guarantee to NBS Bank PLC, a commercial bank licensed in Malawi, will increase lending to MSMEs focused on agriculture, clean cooking, fisheries, and sustainable forestry sectors.
  • Driving economic growth in Serbia: In collaboration with USAID/Serbia, a $41 million loan portfolio guarantee to Banca Intesa a.d. Beograd will promote lending to SMEs and aid in the post-pandemic economic recovery.
  • Addressing the gendered housing and financing gap in India: An up to $50 million loan to IIFL Home Finance Limited will support the provision of approximately 1,500 housing loans and 650 MSME loans over the next five years with a focus on benefitting women and low-income borrowers. 10 percent of DFC loan proceeds will be allocated to financing mortgages for green-certified housing.
  • Enabling lending for education and the informal sector in Tanzania: A $20 million loan portfolio guarantee to CRDB Bank Plc will support lending to SMEs, including those in the education and informal sectors.

Many of these investments are subject to Congressional Notification.

Source: U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (link opens in a new window)

Categories
Investing
Tags
impact bonds, impact investing