The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, will provide up to COP 4 billion, approximately USD 2.1 million, to Colombia’s Corporacion Mundial de la Mujer de Medellin (WWB-Medellin) in order to support the bank’s expansion. This financing follows another loan of up to USD 2.1 million that IFC committed earlier this year to WWB Medellin.
Margarita Correa, General Manager of WWB Medellin, said, “IFC’s renewed support will allow us to extend services to 2,000 new clients and address gaps in formal financing for local microenterprises, many of which are managed by women.”
WWB Medellin is member of the Women’s World Banking Network. The company was founded in 1985 and became an affiliate of the Women’s World Network in 1987. As of December 2007, the company had over 66,000 active borrowers and USD 68.2 million in loans outstanding. Earlier this year, MicroCapital reported on a Women’s World Banking study that found that once an MFI is “transformed” (morphed from being a non-profit lender to a regulated financial institution), the proportion of women that the MFI serves drops on average from 88 percent to 60 percent.
The International Finance Corporation is an intergovernmental organization launched in 1956. It is a member of the World Bank Group and its main objective is the promotion of private enterprise. The IFC finances private sector investment, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, and provides advisory services to businesses and governments. For the fiscal year ending June 2008, IFC reported total assets of USD 49.5 billion.
By Iyanna Holmes, Research Assistant
Additional Resources:
IFC Press Release: IFC Supports Expansion of Microfinance Institution in Colombia
International Finance Corporation
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: April 22, 2008, Stemming the Tide of Mission Drift: Microfinance and the Double Bottom Line, by Christina Frank
MIX Market: WWB Medellin
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