Press release -
Swedfund invests in MSME growth and climate action in Vietnam
Swedfund invests in Vietnamese EVF General Finance JSC (EVF) through a loan of up to USD 20 million. EVF is a financial services provider for Micro-, Small- and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). The loan will support access to capital for these companies, and parts of the proceeds are earmarked for climate action and women owned enterprises.
Vietnam is one of Southeast Asia’s fastest growing economies, with rapidly increasing energy demand and greenhouse gas emissions. Access to long term finance remains limited, particularly for MSMEs. Through the loan, Swedfund provides additional long-term financing that enables EVF to expand lending to underfinanced MSMEs while supporting climate related investments.
“With this investment, we particularly aim to boost climate action and women’s participation in the economy. Of the loan, 40 percent will go to climate projects, like renewable energy and climate mitigation, and 30 percent will go to women owned enterprises. In this way we can both create decent jobs while contributing to a more sustainable and equal economy,” says Jane Niedra, Director of Financial Inclusion at Swedfund.
The loan was granted as part of a USD 40 million financing package arranged by OeEB and Swedfund.
About EVF
EVF General Finance Joint Stock Company, based in Hanoi, Vietnam, was founded in 2008 and is one of Vietnam's leading non-banking financial institutions. Under its general financial license, EVF Finance offers a comprehensive range of financial services, including the granting of credit lines to micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).
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About Swedfund
Swedfund is Sweden’s development finance institution with the mission to reduce poverty through sustainable investments in developing countries. Swedfund plays an important role in the implementation of the 2030 Agenda and the Paris Agreement on climate. Swedfund shares the same goal as development cooperation in general, but the tools Swedfund uses are different. Swedfund has two instruments to fulfil its mission: sustainable investments in the private sector and technical feasibility studies through the Project Accelerator targeting the public sector.
Swedfund's investments contribute to the creation of decent jobs and increased access to essential products and services such as electricity and food. Swedfund is a long-term investor and is additional and catalytic through its investments and by mobilising private capital. Swedfund's feasibility studies support sustainable public infrastructure development, trade, and export opportunities for Swedish solutions.
We are part of Swedish development cooperation, and we measure and report all our results. As a state-owned company, Swedfund is managed by the Ministry of Finance and financed through portfolio reflows and annual capital injections for which the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs is responsible.
For more information: please visit www.swedfund.se/en
