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Asunción, Paraguay, July 26, 2011
—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, signed a short-term debt agreement with Paraguay’s Sudameris Bank S.A.E.C.A. to provide $15 million to expand access to finance for local farmers and small and medium entrepreneurs in the agribusiness sector, in which Paraguay has a strong competitive advantage.
IFC’s short-term loan for up to 12 months is renewable twice for up to three years. This transaction, the first under IFC’s Global Warehouse Finance Program, is consistent with IFC’s wider strategy to reach farmers. The program encompasses short-term loans to commercial banks to support lending to the agriculture sector against warehouse receipts or similar collateral schemes for financing agriculture inventory.
“This new investment will enhance our position in Paraguay’s financial system, particularly in the agribusiness sector, which is essential to economic growth and job creation in the country,” said Conor McEnroy, President of Sudameris Bank, subsidiary of Abbeyfield Group. “As a leading financial institution in Paraguay, we are pleased to consolidate our strategic relationship with IFC.”
Financial institutions such as Sudameris Bank play an important role in ensuring continued lending to real sectors which contribute to the country’s expansion and growth. Through IFC’s investment, Sudameris Bank will be able to increase its lending to commodity owners using warehouse receipts as collateral, allowing them to optimize the timing of the sale and delivery of their inventory.
“IFC is supporting Sudameris as the bank advances efforts to serve key economic sectors where access to finance is limited,” said Salem Rohana, IFC Country Manager for Argentina, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay. “This new transaction is an indication of our continuous commitment to helping develop Paraguay’s financial system.”
“IFC welcomes the participation of Sudameris Bank in this new warehouse-receipts initiative, and it’s our pleasure to be able to support the bank’s growth,” said Georgina Baker, Director of IFC’s Short Term Finance department, which launched the Global Warehouse Finance Program in September 2010.
IFC’s strategy in Paraguay promotes business expansion into other emerging markets, supports micro, small, and medium enterprises, fosters global trade, and protects natural resources through environmentally sustainable business practices. For more information about IFC in Latin America and the Caribbean, visit
www.ifc.org/lac
.
About Sudameris Bank
Sudameris Bank has been owned by Abbeyfield Group since 2004, when Abbeyfield acquired a 78 percent stake and in 2008 acquired the remaining stake to own 98 percent. The bank offers a full range of banking services to large corporations, small and medium enterprises, and retail customers through its 18 branches and 65 ATMs across Paraguay; by 2012, the bank will add 14 branches and 10 ATMs. Its products include current and savings accounts, CDs, commercial loans, mortgages, trade finance, foreign exchange, warrants, and insurance products through an in-house insurance broker. For more information, visit
www.sudameris.com.py
or
www.abbeyfieldgroup.com
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About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. We help developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, providing advisory services to businesses and governments, and mobilizing capital in the international financial markets. In fiscal 2011, amid economic uncertainty across the globe, we helped our clients create jobs, strengthen environmental performance, and contribute to their local communities—all while driving our investments to an all-time high of nearly $19 billion. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
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