International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, announced yesterday it had agreed to lend US$45 million to China's first solely foreign-funded bank, the Business Development Bank.
The money will help extend the bank's reach across the country and expand its lending to small and medium enterprises.
In a statement, Shanghai-based BDB said it would expand coverage and volume of its lending to smaller businesses significantly over the next few years through a new SME lending model, without further elaborating.
It disclosed that the United States-based United Commercial Bank had signed an agreement with its shareholders to acquire all its shares and develop the bank into a model SME bank.
According to the BDB, the UCB would partner with IFC in its program to broaden the Chinese bank's SME lending coverage and capacity.