To strengthen a leading Sri Lankan manufacturer’s global presence, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, committed $28.6 million, as part of a larger envelope of $40 million, to CBL Group. IFC’s investment will enable CBL, one of Sri Lanka’s largest food manufacturing conglomerates, to extend its global footprint across Asia and Africa. The financing supported the acquisition of PT Tri Jaya Tangguh Indonesia (TJT), a large-scale coconut processing facility in Indonesia, and will support the expansion of CBL’s existing biscuit manufacturing facility in Ghana.…
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IFC and Carbonwave Turn a Growing Climate Threat into Sustainable Economic Opportunity
With the goal of supporting an innovative circular economy solution that transforms a growing climate and environmental threat into a job‑creating industry with high economic and environmental value, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has announced the successful closing of an investment in Carbonwave, the first company to transform sargassum into commercially viable agricultural biostimulants and cosmetic emulsifiers. Sargassum, a seaweed that once grew in an isolated part of the Atlantic Ocean, has started to bloom out of control and overwhelm beach ecosystems across…
Read MoreSMFG and IFC Partner to Launch the World’s First Digital Inclusion Bond, Supporting Growth and Job Creation through MSMEs in Emerging Markets
To promote digitalization and jobs in emerging markets, IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has partnered with Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG), one of the leading Japanese financial groups with a strong presence in Asia-Pacific, to launch the world’s first social bond exclusively dedicated to digital inclusion, including for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), totaling US$500 million. Expanding financial access for MSMEs through digital tools further supports their role as the primary driver of jobs in emerging markets. As an anchor investor, IFC collaborated with SMFG to…
Read MoreIFC Invests in Scotiabank Mexico to Expand Access to Housing Finance for Women
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, announced an investment of up to US$250 million in Scotiabank Mexico to expand access to housing finance for women—a key segment for the country’s economic and social development. The investment aims to address Mexico’s significant housing deficit and the gender gap in access to mortgages, while promoting growth and economic inclusion. Mexico faces a housing shortage of 9 million units, leaving millions of families—especially in rural and low-income communities—without adequate housing. Women are disproportionately affected: only 4.5% have…
Read MoreIFC Supports Côte d’Ivoire Electricity for All Program’s Second Social Bond to Bring Electricity to Millions More People
To boost access to electricity for low-income households and small businesses in Côte d’Ivoire, IFC recently announced its support for a bond issuance that will help finance up to 600,000 new electricity connections, benefiting nearly 2.8 million people in the country, an almost 10 percent increase in national electricity access. IFC’s guarantees, totaling up to XOF15.8 billion (US$28.3 million equivalent), will support the participation of Société Ivoirienne de Banque (SIB) and the Emerging Africa and Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF) as anchor investors in the bond, issued by a securitization vehicle…
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