IFC R2.6bn loan aimed at helping FirstRand help SMEs
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a subsidiary of the World Bank Group, has given small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) an extra push with a programme that will inject billions of rand into these enterprises over the next five to seven years. The SME Push Program loaned $200m to FirstRand on Friday, which the banking group is expected to on-lend to SMEs through its retail banking franchise FNB. "SA has an estimated 2.3-million micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which are by far the biggest source of employment accounting for 60% of total existing jobs in the country," said John Wilson, manager at the IFC sub-Saharan Africa financial institutions group.
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