Siddhartha Bank Inks $40 Million Risk-Sharing Deal with IFC

Siddhartha Bank Limited has partnered with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-sector lending arm of the World Bank Group, on a $40 million risk-sharing facility to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Through the initiative, executed under the IFC's Small Loan Guarantee Program, the multilateral agency will absorb 50 percent of the default risk on qualifying small-business loans issued by the commercial bank. Several domestic outlets, including Corporate Nepal, Annapurna Post, and Setopati, reported that the agreement marks the IFC's first risk-sharing transaction in Nepal.

Siddhartha Bank Chief Executive Officer Rameshwar Prasad Basyal noted that the facility will strengthen the institution's lending capabilities during an adverse domestic economic environment, enabling wider financing access, business growth, and job creation. The arrangement deepens an existing decade-long institutional partnership that began in 2014 with the IFC's Global Trade Finance Program. It also follows a landmark $55 million foreign-currency syndicated borrowing secured via the IFC in 2023, accompanied by technical advisory programs in digital, climate, and gender-inclusive banking.