KCB Bank on Tuesday announced that it had acquired a US$150 million (Ksh16.3 billion) loan from the International Finance Corporation (IFC) as lead syndicator, to support the growth of the lender’s sustainable climate finance portfolio and scale-up lending to Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) including women-owned businesses.
The bank believes the credit line will contribute to the economic growth of the Kenyan economy by helping develop green lending and creating employment, especially for women.
KCB Bank has embedded environmental sustainability at its strategic, portfolio, and transactional levels across all business areas.
“This financing is aligned with our green financing goals, and will also enable us to expand our financing to SME and special market segments like women and youth-owned enterprises that are critical to the growth of the economy, but are facing acute financing gap,” KCB Group CEO Joshua Oigara said in a statement.
“It complements the government’s effort, through the MSME guarantee scheme, to avail funding to this important section of our economy, he added.
“We are happy to partner with IFC in this innovative financial instrument, which will enable us to support the economy as the country begins recovery from the impact of COVID-19. It will enable us open a path for more credit to the Small and Medium-Sized entrepreneurs,” Oigara said.
“The financing is in line with our sustainability agenda to support a climate-resilient economy and reinforces the bank’s commitment to the Principles of Responsible Banking.”
In 2019, KCB Group was the only East African Bank joining another 30 founding banks globally under the auspice of UNEP- FI to develop and launch Principles for Responsible Banking that are guiding tools for global banking industry players aspiring to run sustainable businesses.
Since 2015 KCB Bank has incorporated the Social and Environmental Management System (SEMS) into its lending process.
According to this agreement, KCB will mobilize commercial financing into the SME and climate finance sector in Kenya and also impart knowledge, drive innovation, and build capacity. On other hand, IFC will offer training in the areas of green finance.
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