UBA secure $150 million loan from AfDB to boost SME lending

01 Dec 2016
Financial Nigeria

Summary

UBA said it will use the facility to scale up lending to female entrepreneurs and SMEs across various sectors such as manufacturing, construction, agriculture, education, and services.

Kennedy Udoka, Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa

The United Bank for Africa (UBA) has secured a $150 million credit facility from the African Development Bank (AfDB) to finance infrastructure and small and medium scale (SME) projects across Africa, according to a statement released on Thursday.

Kennedy Uzoka, UBA’s Group Managing Director/CEO, said the AfDB’s financing will support development of productive sectors of the economy, including the power sector, infrastructure, women-owned enterprises as well as SMEs.

“This line of credit comes at an opportune time and would boost efforts at reducing the huge power sector-financing deficit that is limiting energy supply and complement our support to medium and small scale enterprises while also promoting gender diversification across the value chain” Uzoka said.

Given its massive branch network, UBA said it will use the AfDB’s facility to scale up lending to female entrepreneurs and SMEs in both rural and urban areas spread across various sectors such as manufacturing, construction, agriculture, education, and services.

Founded in 1949, UBA is one of Nigeria’s largest banks with operations in 19 African countries as well as the United Kingdom, the United States, and France. The bank has over 600 branches, serving about 11 million customers worldwide.


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