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(Ecofin Agency) – The financing is announced one month after Access Bank unveiled plans to acquire Kenyan bank Sidian.
U.S Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently signed a US$280 million commitment letter to Nigeria’s Access Bank Plc. The financing, a loan precisely, will be used to fund local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
The loan “will boost financial inclusion in Nigeria and empower women entrepreneurs, bolstering the country’s economic growth,” said Scott Nathan, CEO of DFC.
The financing comes nearly a month after Access Bank announced plans to acquire Kenyan commercial bank Sidian Bank to strengthen its position in the East African banking market.
The loan will be on-lent across more than a dozen sectors of the Nigerian economy, with a particular focus on women-owned SMEs, non-oil sectors, and longer-term lending. Thanks to the financing, Access Bank plc is expected to support at least 4,000 new SMEs in Nigeria. It will provide those businesses with much-needed liquidity in a context marked by a global economic downturn fuelled by the coronavirus pandemic.
Chamberline MOKO
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