IFC Supports Trade in Emerging Markets with $1 Billion in Guarantees

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, today announced that its Global Trade Finance Program has reached a milestone of $1 billion in guarantees issued since its inception in October 2005, benefiting a wide range of entrepreneurs in emerging markets. The program, which has issued 884 guarantees in support of trade transactions worth over $1.5 billion, has promoted trade worldwide by supporting flows of goods and services to and from developing countries and helping banks deliver finance to businesses in markets where trade lines are constrained.

Through the program, IFC provides guarantee coverage of bank risk in emerging markets, allowing recipients to enhance their trade finance coverage and to expand their trade finance transactions within an extensive network of countries and banks. The network now includes 75 issuing banks in 50 countries and 105 confirming banks in 65 countries.

About 70 percent of the program’s transactions have been in frontier markets, defined as low-income or high-risk countries, including Bangladesh, Haiti, Mozambique, and Yemen. Around 50 percent of transactions were in Africa and more than a third of the guarantees were issued for South-South trade, indicating strong support for trade between emerging markets. The program supports small and medium enterprises, with 70 percent of transactions involving guarantees of under $1 million.

Jyrki Koskelo, IFC Director for Global Financial Markets, said, “Our Global Trade Finance Program has provided participating financial institutions with access to a network of bank partners around the world. The program is having a strong development impact, particularly in countries where no documentary credit was previously available and where trade lines with international banks were insufficient to support the growing demand for imports and exports.”

The billion-dollar milestone was reached on June 28, with an IFC guarantee for a letter of credit valued at 27.8 million Japanese yen issued by Capital Bank of Haiti for imports of automobiles from Japan. Other recent transactions include guarantees issued for the sale of Indian solar panels to Uganda and for the import of Russian sunflower seed oil into Lebanon. A new transaction in Argentina allows the bundling of 54 agribusiness exports to 15 countries into a master $14 million facility involving one issuing bank.

The IFC Global Trade Finance Program also offers benefits for second-tier institutions, which are traditionally underserved by the international banking network. This enables the institutions to finance trade conveniently by accessing the program’s network of partnering banks.

In June, IFC hosted the first Annual Bank Partners Meeting in Paris. More than 100 people representing 65 banks from over 33 countries attended the event, which featured technical sessions, bank presentations, networking opportunities, and a keynote address by IFC Executive Vice President and CEO Lars Thunell.

Over the next year, IFC will continue to expand its program globally, focusing on markets where trade finance support is needed most. Target countries include Benin, Bhutan, Burundi, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Gambia, Georgia, Jamaica, Mali, Nicaragua, Papua New Guinea, Rwanda, Senegal, and Tajikistan.


About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, fosters sustainable economic growth in developing countries by financing private sector investment, mobilizing capital in the international financial markets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments. IFC’s vision is that poor people have the opportunity to escape poverty and improve their lives. In FY06, IFC committed $8.3 billion, including syndications, to 284 investments in 66 developing countries. For more information, please visit www.ifc.org.