Washington, D.C., May 17, 2006
—The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, has signed an agreement to provide an eight-year loan of $30 million to Barclays Bank of Ghana Limited, one of Ghana’s leading banks. This loan represents the largest IFC investment in the financial sector in Ghana to date.
The IFC loan will provide Barclays Ghana with much-needed term foreign currency funding to meet the rapidly growing demand for term financing in one of the most promising economies in West Africa. The loan will help the bank meet the financing needs of its corporate clients as well as those of small and medium enterprises—a vital engine of economic growth in Ghana.
Richard Ranken, IFC’s director of the Sub-Saharan Africa Department, said, "One of our main objectives in Ghana is to deepen financial intermediation and facilitate the private sector’s access to financing from local financial institutions like Barclays Ghana. The IFC loan, which will support the development of export-oriented companies and small and medium enterprises, has the potential to increase the contributions of these businesses to the Ghanaian economy.”
Jyrki Koskelo, IFC’s director for Global Financial Markets, said, “IFC is keen on seeing significant development in the financial markets in Sub-Saharan Africa and is engaged in several initiatives on the continent. This financing to Barclays Ghana is a demonstration of IFC’s confidence in the Ghanaian economy and the future of its financial markets.”
Barclays Ghana, a wholly owned subsidiary of Barclays Bank PLC, has been operating in the country for the past 80 years. With 25 branches around the country, the bank provides a full range of banking services to its retail customers, small and medium enterprises, and corporate clients. As of December 2005, Barclays Ghana’s total assets and shareholders’ funds stood at $540 million and $59 million, respectively.
Margaret Mwanakatwe, Barclays Ghana’s managing director, said, “Barclays Ghana is extremely pleased with this partnership with IFC. The financing will help the bank expeditiously meet the term foreign currency needs of its clients.”
Mwanakatwe added, “The confidence placed in us by IFC demonstrates the strong position of Barclays in Ghana and is only a prelude to several projects our two institutions are working on, including those in the housing finance sector. We look forward to continuing our good cooperation with IFC.”
The International Finance Corporation is headquartered in Washington, D.C. IFC coordinates its activities with the other institutions of the World Bank Group but is legally and financially independent. Its 178 member countries provide its share capital and collectively determine its policies.
The mission of IFC is to promote sustainable private sector investment in developing and transition countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private sector investments in the developing world, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses. From its founding in 1956 through FY05, IFC has committed more than $49 billion of its own funds and arranged $24 billion in syndications for 3,319 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC’s worldwide committed portfolio as of FY05 was $19.3 billion for its own account and $5.3 billion held for participants in loan syndications. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
