Citi Announces Financing to Caja Arequipa to Expand Financial Inclusion in Peru

Spanish

Lima – Citi announced a US$10 million local currency term loan to Caja Municipal de Ahorro y Credito Arequipa SA (Caja Arequipa), a leading financial company serving micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with limited access to financial services in Peru. The financing will enable Caja Arequipa to provide working capital loans to underserved MSMEs around the country with 40% of the proceeds of the loan financing women-owned companies.

The transaction is part of a larger amount deal with the participation of one European impact investor fund manager and part of the Citi Social Finance strategy to work with impact investors and Multilateral Organizations expanding access to credit in low and lower middle-income countries.

The financing, which is part of Citi's $1 trillion commitment to sustainable finance by 2030, contributes to progress on several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including Goal 1, which aims to eliminate poverty, Goal 5, which aims to increase gender equality, and Goal 8, in support of expanding decent work and economic growth.

"Improving financial opportunity for women and small businesses in less developed countries is a priority for Citi. This is our first co-financing transaction with one of the leader European impact investors asset managers, and we expect to expand this model globally" said Jorge Rubio Nava, Global Head of Citi Social Finance. "The transaction is in line with our strategy of supporting 15 million people of which 10 million are women and expand our capacity working with impact investors across the Latin America and beyond"

This investment advances DFC's Women's 2X Initiative, which has catalyzed more than $13.5 billion of investment in projects that empower women in developing countries. It also qualifies for the 2X Challenge, an initiative of the G7 countries to support women's economic empowerment.

Arequipa is the leading CMAC in Peru, with a presence in all the country's regions. Arequipa contributes to the development of the financial sector, as it enables micro-entrepreneurs access to financing in order to expand their businesses. In turn, this translates into overall growth and development of the economy, with a larger and more diversified product and services offering and benefiting from robust regional job creation.

"This loan means an important boost to this important customer segment, thus contributing to financial inclusion and the development of vulnerable sectors throughout all country", said the Central Manager of Finance and Management Control Caja Arequipa, Manuel Chacaltana Cortez. "The risk classifications granted to Caja Arequipa based on our position in the market, profitability, solvency, delinquent portfolio coverage and our funding structure, make it possible to obtain this financing, which will help us to continue transforming lives, being a bank with good corporate governance and social responsibility".