Colombian bank Bancolombia (NYSE: CIB) loaned more than 15.3bn pesos (US$5.4mn) to some 5,000 small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in September-November this year, as part of an agreement with the central government.
Under the terms of the agreement, Bancolombia was supposed to loan up to 13.5bn pesos by year-end and 45bn pesos in the space of a year to SMEs.
The government-led initiative to improve SME financing has the support of Colombia's banking association, which has agreed to loan 302bn pesos to the sector in order to help breath life back into the economy.
Source: Business News Americas