MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Lends $10m to Latin American Agriculture Development Corporation (LAAD) to Boost Green Investment

The Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO) recently lent USD 10 million to the US-based Latin American Agriculture Development Corporation (LAAD), a funder of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that export agricultural products. The loan is intended to support LAAD’s lending under its Green Finance Framework, through which the firm monitors its customers’ commitments to and progress in adapting to climate change, reducing pollution, and minimizing their use of water and other resources.

LAAD issues loans in Latin America and the Caribbean, typically for terms of five to seven years, to fund “all phases of production, processing, storage, services, technology and marketing” related to agriculture. During the year ending October 2021, LAAD disbursed 341 loans in 13 countries, with a total value of USD 258 million. For the same year, the company reports average return on assets of 2.7 percent and average return on equity of 13 percent.

Established in 1970, FMO is 51-percent held by the Dutch government and 49-percent by private investors. The institution works toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals by funding capacity development and placing debt and equity investments in sectors such as agribusiness, financial institutions and energy. As of December 2021, FMO reported a committed portfolio of EUR 9.7 billion (USD 10.2 billion).

By Renata Samadova, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

FMO monthly transaction data
https://www.fmo.nl/news-detail/939b53ac-fc5e-41cc-8c96-b32ca7fa2100/monthly-transaction-overview-february

LAAD homepage
https://www.laadsa.com

LAAD 2021 annual report
https://www.laadsa.com/pdf/LAAD%202021%20Annual%20Report%20-%20ABRIDGED%20FOR%20WEB.pdf

FMO homepage
https://www.fmo.nl

Previous MicroCapital article on FMO
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-asociacion-de-cooperativas-argentinas-aca-borrows-80m-from-fmo-findev-canada-rabobank-to-boost-exports-of-produce-from-50000-farms-in-argentina/

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