|
Yerevan, Armenia, June 7, 2010—
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a $3 million senior loan to ACBA Leasing, Armenia’s leading leasing company, to help expand access to finance for local small and medium enterprises.
With IFC’s funding, ACBA Leasing will finance the leasing of transportation vehicles and manufacturing and agricultural equipment to small and medium Armenian businesses across the country through ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank’s existing branch network.
“This timely support from IFC will help ACBA Leasing diversify our funding base and deepen institutional capacity to meet clients’ needs,” said Stepan Gishyan, General Manager of ACBA Leasing. “It also will allow us to continue our policy of financing local businesses to obtain new equipment under leasing, thus helping the Armenian economy recover after the global financial crisis.”
Thomas Lubeck, IFC Regional Head, Caucasus, said, “Leasing is an excellent financial product for small and midsize companies, and IFC has been supporting the development of leasing in Armenia since
2002. We are happy to build on our investment relationship with such a strong company as ACBA Leasing.”
IFC was a founder of ACBA Leasing, Armenia’s first leasing company and a subsidiary of ACBA Credit Agricole Bank. IFC invested equity and provided a long-term senior loan to the company in 2003.
IFC has been investing in Armenia since 2000, supporting financial institutions, small retailers, and the hotel and other industries. IFC also has implemented advisory projects to strengthen the financial sector, establish a sustainable market for energy efficiency and renewable energy investments, and
improve the country’s business environment.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing capital for private enterprise, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $14.5 billion in fiscal 2009, helping channel capital into developing countries during the financial crisis. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
About ACBA Leasing
Established in 2003, ACBA Leasing was Armenia’s first leasing company. It was established jointly by IFC; the Agricultural Cooperative Bank of Armenia; Ucabail, the leasing arm of the Credit Agricole Group of France; and the Lebanese Leasing Company. The company’s core shareholders are ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank and Credit-Agricole Leasing, a subsidiary of Credit Agricole SA. Based on portfolio diversification and increasing demand for leasing as a source of financing, ACBA Leasing’s main activity is financing small and medium enterprises in various sectors of the economy. For more information, visit
www.acbaleasing.am
.
|
