MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Stanbic IBTC of Nigeria to Borrow $75m from CDC Group for On-lending in Sectors with Significant SME Supply Chains

The CDC Group, a development finance institution owned by the UK government’s Department for International Development, recently agreed to lend USD 75 million on a “long-term” basis to Nigeria’s Stanbic IBTC Bank, a member of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group. The funding will allow Stanbic IBTC to boost its lending in sectors such as manufacturing, telecommunications and construction, which “employ large numbers of local staff and support substantial SME [small and medium-sized enterprise] supply chains.”

Wole Adeniyi, the Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC, stressed that, “Continuing to provide financing to local businesses is fundamental to mitigating the impacts of COVID-19 and accelerating Nigeria’s long-term economic recovery.”

Stanbic IBTC is the result of the mergers of Stanbic Bank Nigeria, Nigeria’s Investment Banking & Trust Company (IBTC) and the Nigerian operations of South Africa-based Standard Bank. The bank offers corporate, investment, business and personal banking products. As of June 2020, Stanbic IBTC reported total assets of NGN 3 trillion (USD 7.9 billion), gross earnings of NGN 127 billion (USD 333 million) and a semi-annual after-tax profit of NGN 45 billion (USD 119 million).

As of June 2020, Standard Bank Group had 51,000 employees and reported total assets of ZAR 2.6 trillion (USD 168.7 billion) and return on equity of 8.5 percent. It is active in 20 African countries as well as 11 countries and territories in the Americas and Eurasia.

Established in 1948 as the Colonial Development Corporation, the mission of the CDC Group is to foster growth in “sustainable” businesses to raise living standards in developing countries. Since 2012, it has invested only in Africa and South Asia, using debt, direct equity investments and “fund-of-funds” strategies. During 2019, CDC’s investment portfolio was valued at USD 5.8 billion, and it reported new commitments worth GBP 1.7 billion (USD 2.2 billion).

By Nathan Kiplagat, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

CDC Group news release
https://www.cdcgroup.com/en/news-insight/news/cdc-announces-us75-million-long-term-dollar-funding-to-stanbic-ibtc-bank-plc/?fl=true

Stanbic IBTC homepage
https://www.stanbicibtcbank.com/

Stanbic IBTC financial report 2020
https://reporting.stanbicibtc.com/resultsreports.php

Standard Bank Group homepage
https://www.standardbank.com/

CDC Group homepage
https://www.cdcgroup.com

CDC 2019 financial figures
https://www.cdcgroup.com/en/our-impact/key-data/

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