DUSHANBE, July 17, 2014, Asia-Plus -- Oesterreichische Entwicklungsbank (OeEB), the Development Bank of Austria grants a USD 5 million long term (4 years) senior loan facility to AccessBank Tajikistan.

According to AccessBank Tajikistan, the loan agreement was signed on July 11.  The loan will support the Bank’s lending activities to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) in the core regions of the country.  It is expected that the funds will provide access to finance to more than 1,000 clients including farmers and production enterprises.

“We strongly welcome the support of OeEB as a strategic and like-minded partner to AccessBank Tajikistan.  The OeEB funds will make a significant contribution to enhance the Bank’s lending activities to micro, small and medium businesses, predominantly in rural areas where we are establishing a comprehensive network of branches covering all regions of the country,” commented Katharina Schachtner, CEO of AccessBank Tajikistan on the occasion.

The successful cooperation between OeEB and the network of AccessBanks started in 2009 with a technical assistance project to improve the banking services development of AccessBank "The project shows very well how technical assistance can support the development of the financial system.  OeEB''s credit line will now improve access to finance for MSME,” said Andrea Hagmann and Michael Wancata, Members of the Executive Board of OeEB.

OeEB has been operating as the Development Bank of Austria since March 2008 and is mandated to support commercially self-sustaining projects in the private sector of developing countries that contribute to sustainable development and respect social and environmental standards.  OeEB provides financing solutions for a diverse set of long-term investments that are usually not available in these markets.  In addition to the commercial financing activities, OeEB has been provided by the Government of Austria with grant money to finance technical assistance measures to enhance the developmental impacts.  Although a privately-owned bank, the political and commercial risks involved in the projects of OeEB are covered by sovereign guarantees issued by the Government of Austria.

AccessBank Tajikistan is one of the main microfinance providers in the country with currently four branches in the capital Dushanbe, and one branch each in the northern Sughd province (Khujand), the central (RRS) region (Tursunzoda) and the southern Khatlon province (Qurghon Teppa).  With its growing branch network and experienced staff it is currently serving around 8,800 loan clients.  The signing of the facility marks OeEB’s first lending engagement in Central Asia. Alongside the loan OeEB also supports the institutional development of AccessBank Tajikistan in the area of risk management, retail strategy and rating.

AccessBank Tajikistan was founded in 2009 by EBRD, IFC, KfW and Access Holding and operates since April 2010.  AccessBank concentrates on lending to micro and SME businesses.  In its fourth year of operations, AccessBank Tajikistan registered very strong lending performance.  The bank’s total outstanding loan portfolio reached USD 46.5 million by May 2014 and grew by 65% yoy.  One and a half years after the receipt of the deposit license from the National Bank of Tajikistan the bank achieved a deposit portfolio of over USD 2.2 million and grew by 184% yoy.  The strong growth trends in all business areas are expected to continue in the coming years.