We’re proud to share that our member FinDev Canada has announced a USD 10 million loan support to Colombia’s Business Development Bank (Bancóldex). Alongside IDB Invest, FinDev Canada’s financing will support Bancóldex’s COVID-19 emergency liquidity lending program, which will support SMEs severely affected by the pandemic in Colombia.
Created in 1992, Bancóldex has played an essential role in the development of the country by boosting exports, supporting SMEs, and promoting environmental sustainability. Earlier this year, Bancóldex introduced the Colombia Responde para Todos program, among others, aimed at offering financial services to private sector companies, primarily SMEs, impacted by the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic.
The one-year financing, renewable for an additional year, will allow Bancóldex, in alliance with the Colombian Government, to reach non-regulated microfinance entities, particularly those in regions far from urban centers, which provide financial services to micro-entrepreneurs underserved by local commercial banking. With the support of IDB Invest, FinDev Canada and others, Bancóldex plans to disburse approximately 450,000 loans to MSMEs by 2022, increasing its MSME portfolio by approximately COP 10.3 billion.
The current transaction will allow Bancóldex to expand its credit lines or programs that target Colombian MSMEs affected by the economic crisis and the spread of COVID-19. These emergency credit lines will provide greater liquidity and longer terms for re-payment, helping to sustain companies and preserve employment. The support will help advance the Colombian government’s goal of ensuring the long-term sustainability of the largest number of companies in the MSME ecosystem in Colombia.
Development Finance Institute Canada Inc., operating under the FinDev Canada brand, is a Canadian institution dedicated to providing financial services to the private sector in developing countries to combat poverty through economic growth by focusing on three main themes: economic development through job creation, women economic empowerment, and climate change mitigation. The Development Finance Institute Canada Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Export Development Canada (EDC). Find out more about FinDev Canada here.
