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Asialink secures $150-million loan from IFC to boost lending

Business | Banking & Finance

Asialink secures $150-million loan from IFC to boost lending

By Ben Arnold de Vera

The International Finance Corp. (IFC) has extended a $150-million loan package to Asialink Finance Corp. (AFC) so it can lend to small, especially women-owned, businesses in the Philippines.

The Washington-based private-sector lending arm of the World Bank Group (WBG) disclosed on Dec. 26 that the loan agreement with AFC was signed last Dec. 23.

As earlier reported by Manila Bulletin, the IFC's board of directors back in October greenlit the senior loan for AFC, with an aggregate amount of not more than $150 million.

This financing package is composed of an A loan of as much as $100 million to be disbursed in US dollars or its Philippine peso equivalent and committed in two tranches, plus a B1 loan of up to $50 million for the participants' account, World Bank documents showed.

The IFC shall also manage risks on behalf of its client AFC through a cross-currency swap with a loan equivalent exposure (LEQ) of as much as $7 million.

Besides IFC financing, AFC last November secured a $115-million financing package from the Manila-based Asian Development Bank (ADB), backed by HSBC and Security Bank Corp.

Earlier this year, Asia-based private equity fund Creador invested equity in AFC's parent-firm Asialink Group to acquire an 18-percent stake in AFC.

Founder Ruben Y. Lugtu II and his family currently own 70 percent of AFC, while 12 percent belongs to chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder Robert B. Jordan Jr.

Asialink Group, which includes Global Dominion Financing Inc. (GDFI) and South Asialink Finance Corp. (SAFC), has more than 362 branches nationwide.

Related Tags

International Finance Corp. Asialink Finance Corp.

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