In the last quarter of 2020, five IFC projects with We-Fi financing focusing on access to finance and markets to WSMEs in response to the COVID-19 crisis were approved. In the Philippines, two new loans with a total value of $11 million were issued to two of the country’s largest microfinance institutions which will help keep businesses stay afloat and save jobs. In El Salvador, IFC and We-Fi are incentivizing Banco Agrícola, the largest bank in the country, to strategically continue its focus on the WSME segment and to scale up its on-lending to WSMEs. The $330 million financial package includes a performance-based incentive by We-Fi for lending to women-led businesses.
An equity investment of $2 million by IFC with a co-investment of $2 million by We-Fi in e-commerce marketplace MaxAB, an online platform in Egypt connecting informal food and grocery sellers with suppliers, will help increase its focus and outreach to women-led retailers on the platform.
Advisory support will be provided to Bancamía S.A., Colombia’s second largest microfinance institution, to develop a tailored financial product for WSMEs, specifically targeting Venezuelan Forcibly Displaced Population (FDP).
