BAKU, Azerbaijan, March 30
Tamilla Mammadova – Trend:
The International Finance Corporation partnered with Isbank Georgia — a wholly owned subsidiary of Isbank (Turkey) — to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in 2020, which are particularly vulnerable to crises like the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Vittorio Di Bello, International Finance Corporation's (IFC’s) Regional Head of Industry for Financial Institutions in Europe and Central Asia told Trend.
"IFC has provided a $10-million loan to support Isbank Georgia’s expansion of its on-lending program to SMEs. Isbank’s loans are expected to be mainly used by companies to import equipment, machinery and other goods," he said.
As he noted, this will enable them to expand, create jobs, and contribute to the nation’s economic growth.
According to him, another agreement with IFC for cross-currency interest swaps, allows Isbank Georgia to hedge its USD-denominated funding to better manage its currency and interest rate risk.
"IFC - supported by the Women Entrepreneurs Opportunity Facility — provided two local currency loans in the total amount of 200 million lari ($59.2 million) to Bank of Georgia to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and women entrepreneurs in 2019-2020, Di Bello said.
The International Finance Corporation is an international financial institution that offers investment, advisory, and asset-management services to encourage private-sector development in less developed countries.
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