German fund lends $ 15 m for SME development via LOLC Group

Thursday, 11 September 2014 00:34 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

DEG – Deutsche Investitions und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH – recently provided a $ 15 m credit facility on a five-year term period to Commercial Leasing & Finance PLC (CLC), a member of the LOLC Group, for the development of its SME portfolio. An official signing ceremony was held at the LOLC Head Office premises on 4 September with senior officials from DEG, CLC and LOLC in attendance. Dr. Michael Bornmann, member of the Management Board of DEG and Maria Spoelgen, Vice President of DEG’s Asia Department, participated from DEG whilst Kapila Jayawardena, Group Managing Director/CEO of LOLC Group, Ishara Nanayakkara, Chairman of CLC and Deputy Chairman of LOLC Group and Krishan Thilakaratne – Director/CEO participated from CLC.

Seated from left: LOLC Group Managing Director/CEO Kapila Jayawardena, CLC Chairman and LOLC Deputy Chairman Ishara Nanayakkar, DEG Management Board member Dr. Michael Bornmann and DEG’s Asia Department Vice President Maria Spoelgen. Standing from left: LOLC Group Treasurer Rohan Perera, CLC Director/CEO Krishan Thilakaratne and DEG Consultant Geeth Balasuriya This is the second DEG credit facility for the LOLC Group. Previously, a Euro 7.5 m loan was made available to LOLC in 2007 to enhance the company’s lending portfolio towards the SME sector. Furthermore, DEG extended its technical assistance to LOLC Group of Companies to develop their treasury risk management system which enabled the Group to enhance mitigation measures. DEG, a subsidiary of KfW, finances investments of private companies in developing and transition countries. As one of Europe’s largest development finance institutions, it promotes private business structures to contribute to sustainable economic growth and improved living conditions. CLC, a subsidiary of the LOLC Group, is a reputed and stable non-bank financial institution providing a diverse portfolio of financial solutions to the SME and micro segments in Sri Lanka. Over the years, the company has displayed a consistent and resilient growth in financial performance and stability. In the June quarter of FY 2014/15, CLC maintained a commendable record of PBT at Rs. 1,288 m compared with the previous year and an impressive growth in deposits from Rs. 3 b to Rs. 7.5 b. CLC has a strong investment grade rating of A- with a stable outlook from ICRA Lanka Ltd., which is a wholly-owned subsidiary of ICRA Ltd., a group company of Moody’s Investors Service.