Egypt: Banque Misr, the country's second largest public bank, will receive a $234 million loan to support small and medium-sized businesses and very small private businesses

Banque Misr, Egypt’s second largest state-owned bank, is set to secure a $234 million senior foreign currency loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC). The loan agreement was announced on October 15, on the sidelines of the 2023 annual meetings of the World Bank Group and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Marrakech, Morocco.

The financing obtained will be dedicated to the expansion of the bank’s lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and very small private enterprises (VSE). The century-old bank will reserve half of this $234 million for SMEs and VSEs owned by women, to reduce the financing gap these businesses face.

By targeting the SME and VSE segment, Banque Misr hopes to increase access to financing for these companies which employ the vast majority of the Egyptian private sector workforce and constitute the largest source of job creation. jobs in the country.

Regarding businesses run by women, the financial institution takes an interest in them, especially after having offered banking services to more than 55,000 women in 2022 and setting up a specific program dedicated to advice and business development. women-owned businesses.

“Our partnership with the IFC will help increase the number of women-led businesses in our SME banking portfolio, and strengthen the financial inclusion of women entrepreneurs across the country,” said Mohamed El Etreby, president of the IFC. Banque Misr.

Remember that initially, the IFC planned to grant up to $260 million to Banque Misr. This initial amount announced in its May 2023 project note was ultimately revised downward to reach $234 million. Of this sum, the subsidiary of the World Bank group will provide $190.7 million in equity, while the remaining $43.3 million will come from the One Planet program managed by the IFC.

The VSE and SME business sectors that will be supported by the project mainly include construction, manufacturing, real estate development, food and beverage, and other services that are expected to have negative environmental and social risks. boundaries.