Press release -
Swedfund continues to support SME lending in Kenya
Swedfund has announced a second investment of USD 7.5 million in Kenya's Victoria Commercial Bank (VCB) PLC. The loan will further strengthen the bank's ability to finance small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), which play a vital role in Kenya's economy by creating jobs and driving growth.
—Small and medium-sized enterprises are the backbone of economies, employment and innovation. With this second loan, we want to deepen our impact and enhance their capacity to support even more businesses. This investment is in line with Swedfund's mission to reduce poverty through sustainable investments, says Jane Niedra, Investment Director for Financial Inclusion at Swedfund.
Access to long-term finance remains one of the biggest challenges for SMEs in developing countries. Swedfund’s investment aims to provide SMEs in sectors such as manufacturing, trade and agriculture with greater access to capital, enabling them to develop and expand their business.
—We are proud to partner with Swedfund, a respected institution supported by the Swedish government. Through this collaboration, we can grow while continuing to provide financial services with integrity. Beyond financing, Swedfund brings valuable technical expertise, enabling us to better support our SME clients and contribute to sustainable economic development. We highly value this partnership and our shared focus on growth and long-term sustainability, says Dr. Yogesh Pattni, CEO of Victoria Commercial Bank PLC.
VCB PLC is a SME-focused bank in Kenya, operating with a robust governance structure and financial stability. The bank's strategy focuses on personalised customer relationships and digital development, increasing access to financial services for underserved businesses
Background
Swedfund invested in VCB PLC in 2018 with a loan of USD 5 million, becoming the first development finance institution to invest in the bank. With Swedfund's support, the bank has developed an environmental and social management system (ESMS) to systematically manage sustainability risks, including a sustainability policy, ESG risk assessment and staff training. The management system complies with the IFC Performance Standards and the ILO Core Conventions.
As part of its commitment to gender inclusion, VCB PLC has implemented Women4Growth - a Swedfund-supported women’s empowerment program - providing leadership and inclusion training. The bank qualifies for the 2X Challenge with over 50% female employees and more than 30% female senior managers.
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About Swedfund
Swedfund is Sweden’s development finance institution with the mission to reduce poverty through sustainable investments in developing countries. Swedfund plays an important role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate. Swedfund shares the same goal as development cooperation in general, but the tools Swedfund uses are different. Swedfund has two instruments to fulfil its mission: sustainable investments in the private sector and technical feasibility studies through the Project Accelerator targeting the public sector.
Swedfund's investments contribute to the creation of decent jobs and increased access to essential products and services such as electricity and food. Swedfund is a long-term investor and is additional and catalytic through its investments and by mobilising private capital. Swedfund's feasibility studies support sustainable public infrastructure development, trade, and export opportunities for Swedish solutions.
We are part of Swedish development cooperation, and we measure and report all our results. As a state-owned company, Swedfund is managed by the Ministry of Finance and financed through portfolio reflows and annual capital injections for which the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible.
For more information: please visit www.swedfund.se/en
