The IFC announced providing the Arab African International Bank (AAIB) with a USD 100 mn loan to help it scale up lending to SMEs “and build its sustainable energy finance portfolio in response to increased energy bills for many companies and SMEs.” About half of the loan is earmarked for increasing SME loans. The other half will go towards “introducing credit lines that support energy efficiency, helping businesses that need to make capital investments to refurbish or renovate existing operations to reduce energy costs.” Mouayed Makhlouf, IFC Regional Director for MENA says “this loan will help a strong bank increase its reach to smaller businesses and encourage other financial institutions to follow suit, while also helping to boost energy efficiency in Egypt.” You can read the press release here (pdf).