Standard Chartered and International Finance Corporation have launched a $300m risk-sharing facility.
\nIt aims to expand trade and supply chain finance across eight African markets.
\nThe programme is expected to unlock roughly $1.9 billion in transactions over three years, helping to narrow Africa\u2019s $120 billion annual trade finance gap.<\/p>\n
Standard Chartered and the World Bank Group\u2019s private-sector lending arm, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), have launched a $300 million risk-sharing facility aimed at expanding trade and supply chain finance across Africa.<\/p>\n
Under the arrangement announced on Tuesday, 28 April, the IFC will provide guarantees of up to $150 million to back trade finance assets originated by Standard Chartered, supporting transactions denominated in US dollars as well as selected local currencies.<\/p>\n
The programme will initially cover eight markets \u2013 C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Tanzania, and Zambia.<\/p>\n
Over the next three years, the partnership is expected to facilitate approximately $1.9 billion in supply chain finance transactions and support more than 500 suppliers.<\/p>\n
\u201cSupply chain resilience is critical for the sustainable economic development of emerging markets,\u201d Nicolas Langlois, Global Head of Trade Finance Distribution at Standard Chartered, told Trade Finance Global (TFG). \u201cWe are pleased to further build on our partnership with the IFC to offer clients from critical sectors solutions that help them navigate volatility and uncertainty with more confidence.\u201d<\/p>\n
Africa\u2019s trade finance gap<\/a>, or the value of unmet trade finance demand, is valued at $120 billion annually and limits businesses on the continent from fully participating in global trade networks. Standard Chartered and the IFC seek to address this gap.\u00a0<\/p>\n The initiative builds on a broader push by multilateral institutions to best mobilise private capital through risk-sharing mechanisms. In December 2024, IFC and HSBC launched<\/a> a $1 billion trade finance programme covering emerging markets across Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East.<\/p>\n Sector specifics<\/p>\n The facility focuses on agriculture, healthcare, and manufacturing.<\/p>\n Agriculture remains the economic backbone across most of the continent, but the sector faces disruptions in terms of underinvestment and supply-chain fragility. A report by the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program (GAFSP) found<\/a> that smallholder farmers in Africa produce as much as 80% of the continent\u2019s food, yet face an estimated $170 billion annual financing shortfall.<\/p>\n The African Development Bank has proposed<\/a> a $500 million facility to unlock $10 billion in financing for smallholder farmers and small agribusinesses; there is significant potential for commercial lending to penetrate the sector.<\/p>\n Healthcare across the eight markets is one of the fastest-growing sectors for private investment, but it remains<\/a> structurally underfunded and heavily reliant on imports. Africa\u2019s pharmaceutical market was valued at roughly $60 billion in 2024 and is projected to more than double to $122 billion by 2032. Across the eight markets covered by the IFC-Standard Chartered facility, there has been a push for clarity and consistency in the regulatory space. Nigeria, for instance, has pioneered digital health interoperability guidelines.\u00a0<\/p>\n