Stanbic Bank Ghana and IFC has announced a partnership to improve the bank’s capability to extend climate-smart investments.
Under this Climate Finance Advisory engagement, IFC will support Stanbic through trainings and advisory support to build the bank’s knowledge in identifying and assessing climate-aligned asset classes such as clean energy, clean transport, climate-smart agriculture, energy efficiency, and green buildings.
Kwamina Asomaning, Chief Executive Officer of Stanbic Ghana has highlighted the importance of climate change and the benefits the bank will derive from joining the IFC’s climate finance advisory program.
“As demand for climate financing grows, we at Stanbic are keen to learn new skills and perspectives to deepen our market understanding of climate-specific opportunities across sectors to improve our product offerings to better serve our clients. IFC’s depth of expertise and broad global experience provides that platform for us.”
Kyle F. Kelhofer, IFC’s Senior Country Manager for Ghana, Liberia, and Sierra Leone commended the bank for being the first bank in the country to join the advisory program.
“I commend Stanbic Bank for stepping forward to be a pioneer in this program in Ghana. IFC looks forward to engaging more Ghanaian banks as the challenge of climate change is universal and the business opportunities in tackling it are limitless.”
Kyle F. Kelhofer
Increasing Number of Climate-Related Projects
In Africa, an increasing number of climate-related projects are underway. The Climate Finance Advisory Program is designed to help financial institutions in sub-Sharan Africa to integrate climate finance into their lending business and drive such investments.
Demand for climate finance knowledge and opportunities is increasing appreciably across the continent, with significant growth seen in East Africa, particularly Kenya and Tanzania, and in Nigeria. The program has led to roughly $250 million in climate loans to customers of participating financial institutions in those countries.
Interest is also growing among financial institutions for portfolio reviews to assess their climate financing potential. This trend points to further growth in climate financing in Africa.
Stanbic Bank Ghana opened its doors to the banking public in 1999 and has since expanded its geographical reach and broadened its scope of financial services, growing consistently over the years to become one of the most well recognized brands in the Ghanaian banking industry.
It has spent half of the ensuing 20 years as a tier-one bank in Ghana and has since then ranked among the leading banks in Ghana by size, by financial solidity and by the sheer quality of the financial intermediation and transaction products and services that it provides.
As a member of the Standard Bank Group, the largest indigenous African banking group in Africa, headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa, Stanbic Bank Ghana is backed by a parent that has over USD160.6 billion in assets.
IFC — a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries.
In fiscal year 2023, IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises.
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