EXIM Bank has $2.8b to lend... Loan arm to focus on SMEs

 The Jamaican Government's Export-Import (EXIM) Bank announced this week that it still has a portfolio of J$2.8 billion to lend to businesses in the current financial year and says it is on a drive to find firms to borrow the cash.

"EXIM Bank has consistently responded positively to the demands of the productive sector and we are seeking creative financial solutions for this very important sector in our growing economy," the bank's managing director, Lisa Bell, told a seminar in Kingston this week, geared primarily at small and medium-size enterprises (SME), which often find it challenging to find working capital for their operations.

Since the start of October, the EXIM Bank has been charging 10 to 11.5 per cent for Jamaican-dollar loans and 7.5 to nine per cent for those denominated in US dollars. These rates, on average, are a drop of two percentage points and are significantly lower than the rates offered by commercial banks.

According to the bank, it has already loaned out $3.2 billion this fiscal year, a substantial portion of which has gone to SMEs for retooling and acquisition of new equipment.

"The workshop served to provide companies with tangible solutions to some of the most pressing problems facing small and medium-size enterprises in the areas of market access, branding, and the importance of standards, export readiness and financing," Bell said of this week's event at which officials of several public and private institutions made presentations.

Bell said several similar sessions are planned for the new year by EXIM Bank.

"It is also our intention to have a session in which successful companies can share their strategies for success with other SMEs," she said.