IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is providing a loan of up to $30 million to City Bank to provide financing for small and medium enterprises and corporate companies affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, said a press release.

The financing package is part of IFC’s $8 billion global COVID-19 fast-track financing facility which aims to help companies stay in business.

This investment comes under the Working Capital Solutions programme of the COVID-19 response envelope which provides $2 billion globally to emerging-market banks.

This allows them to extend credit so firms can cover expenses and pay their employees.

‘IFC played a strong role in strengthening the foreign currency financing ability and offshore banking business of City Bank,’ said City Bank additional managing director Sheikh Mohammad Maroof.

‘We believe that the COVID-19 WCS fund has further strengthened our ability to meet our customers’ foreign currency financing requirements in this pandemic where we have experienced contraction in foreign currency liquidity outside Bangladesh.’

Since 2017, IFC has been a shareholder of City Bank, a longstanding client of IFC.

This financing package will support working capital, trade finance and foreign exchange liquidity needs of sub-borrowers through City Bank’s offshore banking unit.

‘Our experience from past crises has shown that keeping small and medium enterprises solvent is vital to saving jobs and limiting economic damage,’ said IFC country manager for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal Wendy Werner.

‘Through IFC’s fast-track COVID-19 facility, we hope to support The City Bank to lend to businesses whose cash flows have been disrupted by the global outbreak.’