The International Finance Corporation (IFC), through its Global Trade Finance Program, has partnered with Vista Bank to improve the availability of financing the importation of refined oil products, food, raw materials, equipment and consumer goods to meet demand in Guinea and Burkina Faso.
With the partnership, Vista Bank will have access to up to $24 million in IFC funding which will enable the bank’s subsidiaries to finance commodity imports across the west African countries.
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Vista Bank will also leverage the IFC’s technical support to improve its corporate governance and risk management capabilities to better serve small and medium-sized enterprises which are undergoing growth, innovation and global market challenges in Burkina Faso and Guinea.
With global geopolitical trends such as the Russian-Ukraine war, the US-China trade war, limited investments and the COVID-19 pandemic affecting global transport and logistics systems, the partnership between the IFC and Vista Bank is expected to go a long way in boosting trade between Burkina Faso, Guinea and other countries.
According to Simon Tiemtoré, Chairman of Vista Group, “IFC’s investment is critical to help increase access to trade finance for our customers. On the market side, it will further connect Vista Bank’s cross-border connections, increasing countries’ integration through both financial and real sector channels. It will also help link more traders to other countries and connect Burkinabe and Guineans financial markets more deeply.”
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Sérgio Pimenta, the IFC’s Vice President for Africa, added that, “Increasing the availability of trade finance in Guinea and Burkina Faso is crucial to provide better access to essential goods, growth, and job retention and creation. The financing and advisory support announced today builds on IFC’s partnership with Vista Bank and will help keep trade flowing during these times of increasing global economic uncertainty.”
