SANAD partners with The National Bank to support MSMEs and low-income households in Palestinian Territories (باللغة الإنجليزية فقط)
Luxembourg and Ramallah, December 20, 2018 – The SANAD Fund for MSME (SANAD) has granted a senior loan of USD 5 million to The National Bank (TNB), marking the fund’s first banking sector investment in the Palestinian Territories. The main goal of the loan is to support TNB’s lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as well as to low-income households for home improvement and purchase.
The third largest bank in the Palestinian Territories, TNB is solely focused on the West Bank and East Jerusalem areas. In recent years, TNB has transformed itself from a small microfinance bank into a full-service commercial bank. TNB is one of only two banks in the Palestinian Territories offering micro loans, and has developed specialized products and programs for these underserved clients. In addition to general microfinance lending, TNB also specifically offers micro loans to women entrepreneurs and homeowners. The bank plans to increase its focus on the empowerment of youth through the development of new products.
SANAD Board Chairperson Dr. Daniela Beckmann said, “Given TNB’s existing initiatives catering to SANAD’s own target group of MSMEs and low-income households, we are confident that TNB will prove an effective partner in uplifting the socio-economic profile of the residents of the Palestinian Territories, especially of women and youth.”
Chairman of TNB, Talal Nasereddin said: “We are very glad to sign this agreement, which supports our strategy for expanding our lending portfolio for MSMEs; the bank will launch new MSME lending products early next year to support this approach. MSMEs are the backbone of the Palestinian national economy, contributing to job creation and increasing the financial inclusion ratio.”
About the SANAD Fund for MSME
Established in 2011, the SANAD Fund for MSME finances micro, small and medium enterprises and low-income households in the Middle East and North Africa via qualified local lenders. SANAD thereby fosters economic development and job creation – including youth employment – agriculture, affordable housing, and innovations in finance and financial technologies. SANAD strives to meet these goals by providing debt and equity financing to its local partners. The SANAD Technical Assistance Facility multiplies the fund’s development impact and outreach through capacity-building with partner institutions, developing financial infrastructures according to the principles of responsible finance and conducting much required R&D.SANAD’s investors include the KfW Development Bank, which initiated the fund; the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ); the European Union; Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO); OeEB, the Development Bank of Austria; Germany’s GLS Bank and GLS Treuhand; and the Dutch development bank FMO. A public-private partnership, the fund is advised by Finance in Motion GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
For more information, please visit: www.sanad.lu
About TNB
The National Bank (TNB) is the fastest growing Palestinian bank, and the second largest banking group in Palestine, offering comprehensive, integrated financial services to the corporate, retail, Islamic, investment and microfinance sectors. TNB commands the largest shareholder base within the Palestinian banking sector, which includes several leading local corporates. In 2015, TNB acquired Jordan’s Bank al Etihad’s operations in Palestine, and, in 2018, it led a consortium acquiring a majority stake in Palestine Islamic Bank (PIB), the leading Islamic bank in the country.
For more information, please visit www.tnb.ps/en
Media contact – SANAD Fund for MSME
Nikki Eggers
Senior Officer, Marketing & Communications
Phone: +49 (0)69 271 035-470
Email: press@sanad.lu