EBRD provides multi-currency loan to Tajik financial institution

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will expand its support for rural areas of Tajikistan with a new loan to micro-credit deposit-taking organization FINCA, the bank's country office said here Monday.

The multi-currency loan, equivalent to 4 million U.S. dollars, will be used by FINCA to increase financing for micro and small businesses mainly outside the Tajik capital of Dushanbe, in regions underserved by banks.

"The funding will help FINCA Tajikistan to further expand its lending operations, contributing to the development of micro and small enterprises in the country," said Richard Jones, head of the EBRD Resident Office in Dushanbe.

"It will also allow local borrowers, whose revenue streams are predominately in somoni (the currency of Tajikistan), to take medium-term loans in local currency, thus eliminating currency exchange risks," he added.

FINCA has a strong presence across the country, serving clients through its 36 branches and service outlets in central, northern and southern Tajikistan. Since its establishment in 2003, FINCA has mainly been serving smaller micro-finance borrowers with an average loan size of around 1,100 U.S. dollars.

The EBRD has been working with FINCA in Tajikistan since 2012, providing a total of 7 million dollars for on-lending to local small businesses. The bank also works with FINCA in Jordan, Kosovo and Russia as well as other countries in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Endi