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| L-R: Roland Siller, Chief Executive Officer, DEG, and Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Access Bank, at the signing of a USD 100 million senior loan facility to support Nigerian MSMEs, small corporates, and women-led businesses, held on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire... recently. |
Access Bank Plc has successfully secured a USD 100 million senior loan facility from a consortium of Development Finance Institutions (DFIs), led by German DFI DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, with participation from FinDev Canada, Amsterdam-based asset manager ILX, and Austrian DFI OeEB – Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank AG.
This landmark financing is aimed at supporting privately-owned micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), small corporates, and family-owned businesses across Nigeria. A key focus of the facility is on female entrepreneurship and economic empowerment, with at least 30 percent earmarked for gender-lens investing in line with the 2X Challenge, which prioritizes women-owned and women-managed businesses.
Roosevelt Ogbonna, Group Managing Director of Access Bank Plc, highlighted the significance of the partnership: “At Access Bank, we remain steadfast in our commitment to driving economic transformation and fostering inclusive growth across all the countries where we operate. This partnership not only strengthens our ongoing efforts to empower women in business but also reinforces our support for Nigeria’s MSME sector, which plays a pivotal role in the country’s economic development. Through strategic collaborations like this, we continue to enhance opportunities for underserved communities, and we look forward to building on this success to impact even more lives across Africa.”
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| L-R: Saheed Adiamo, Unit Head, Strategic Investments, Access Bank; Roland Siller, Chief Executive Officer, DEG; Roosevelt Ogbonna, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Access Bank; Elizabeth Oguegbu, Group Head, Financial Markets and Funding, Access Bank; Uche Onichabor, Team Member, Project and Structured Finance, Access Bank, and Sotochi Ekeocha, Team Member, Strategic Projects and Funding, Access Bank, at the signing of a USD 100 million senior loan facility to support Nigerian MSMEs, small corporates, and women-led businesses, held on the sidelines of the Africa CEO Forum in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire... recently. |
This transaction marks the fourth collaboration between DEG and the Access Bank Group. However, it is the first time DEG has acted as lead arranger in their eight-year partnership. DEG’s direct investment in this deal stands at USD 25 million, further deepening the strong relationship between the two institutions.
Roland Siller, CEO of DEG, also commented on the partnership: “This financing marks a major step in our ongoing commitment to supporting inclusive growth in Africa. By partnering with Access Bank, we are not just empowering women entrepreneurs and strengthening MSMEs, but also investing in the future of Nigeria’s economy. This collaboration, which has blossomed over the last eight years, goes beyond just providing funding—it reflects our shared commitment to creating sustainable, long-term opportunities that foster job creation and innovation. At DEG, we focus on helping businesses in developing and emerging markets thrive by offering both financial support and advisory services to help them scale and succeed. Our work with Access Bank is a clear example of how impactful, sustainable investments can build stronger economies.”
In 2024, Access Bank recorded significant social and environmental impact across the continent. Through a variety of corporate social investment initiatives in education, entrepreneurship, health, and the environment, the Bank reached over 21 million individuals in Africa. Notably, under its W-Initiative, the Bank disbursed loans to over one million women-led SMEs, furthering its mission of advancing financial inclusion and gender empowerment.