The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has extended a seven-year, US$ 65 million (approximately Rs 7.4 billion) financing facility to the Commercial Bank of Ceylon PLC to expand the latter’s lending to Small and Medium Enterprises (SME), tbe bank said.
IFC’s largest financial markets investment in Sri Lanka to date, the facility is also the first future flow-backed financing done for a bank in South Asia, and is expected to help about 20,000 small businesses, create improved economic conditions that reduce poverty, and improve access to credit in underserved areas, including the north and east of Sri Lanka, a statement from the bank added.
The agreement was signed in Colombo last week with visiting IFC Vice President – Asia Pacific Karin Finkelston and Commercial Bank Managing Director Amitha Gooneratne as principal signatories. Central Bank Deputy Governors K. G. D. D. Dheerasinghe and Ananda Silva, Commercial Bank Chairman Mahendra Amarasuriya and senior officials from the IFC and the bank witnessed the event.
Speaking at the ceremony, Commercial Bank Managing Director Amitha Gooneratne said the US$ 65 million facility would not only improve the bank’s operations, it would also be very beneficial to the country and serve as a catalyst for other financial institutions to structure similar facilities.
Picture shows Commercial Bank Managing Director Amitha Gooneratne (3rd from right) and IFC Vice President Asia Pacific Karin Finkelston at the signing of the milestone agreement. Others in the picture (from left) are Deputy Governor of Central Bank Ananda Silva, Commercial Bank Chairman Mahendra Amarasuriya, Deputy Governor Central Bank K G D D Dheerasinghe and IFC Country Manager Adam Sack.
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