SOUTH AFRICA – International Finance Corporation (IFC) a member of The World Bank, has extended a US$225 million loan to South Africa’s FirstRand Bank, a financial service provider, which will deploy the finance in support of energy-efficient and water-smart projects in South Africa.

The loan includes a US$75-million contribution from the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank FMO, which funds sustainable private sector growth in developing countries and emerging markets.

FirstRand group treasurer Andries du Toit said the transaction would provide it with valuable additional capacity to assist those clients participating in the growth of South Africa’s green economy.

IFC country manager Adamou Labara highlighted that the loan was aligned with the IFC’s broader objective of developing South Africa’s climate finance market and to support the country’s shift to a lower-carbon economy.

“Supporting increased access to green and blue financing is critical to fostering a more inclusive, resilient, and sustainable response to growing climate risks on economic development,” Labara said in a statement.

“Our partnership with FirstRand is especially important now as South African businesses recovering from the Covid-19 crisis look to develop sustainable projects

FirstRand Limited, also referred to as FirstRand Group is the holding company of FirstRand Bank, and is a financial services provider in South Africa. It is one of the financial services providers licensed by the Reserve Bank of South Africa, the national banking regulator.

Listed on the JSE and the Namibian Stock Exchange, FirstRand Limited is one of the largest financial institutions in South Africa, and provides banking, insurance and investment products and services to retail, commercial, corporate and public sector customers.

In addition to South Africa, the group operates in eight key African countries, namely, Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland, Lesotho, Zambia, Mozambique, Tanzania, Ghana and Nigeria. FirstRand Bank has branches in London, Guernsey and India.

FirstRand executes its strategy through a portfolio of leading financial services franchises; Rand Merchant Bank (RMB), the corporate and investment bank; First National Bank (FNB), the retail and commercial bank; WesBank, an instalment finance provider; and Ashburton Investments, the group’s asset management business.

The group has its headquarters in Johannesburg, South Africa. FirstRand is one of the five largest banking groups in South Africa and sub-Saharan Africa.

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