To help increase access to finance for small businesses in Thailand, especially women-owned or led firms, International Finance Corporation (IFC) is providing an equity investment of up to $23.8 million as a cornerstone investor in an initial public offering (IPO) of Thai Credit Bank Public Company Limited (Thai Credit).
IFC said in a statement on last Friday that the first equity investment in a Thai bank will help Thai Credit—the only commercial bank in the country to dedicate financial services to the micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) segment—to expand its MSME portfolio and develop new products for this segment, especially women-owned or led MSMEs (WMSME).
It is noted that MSMEs make up 99.6 percent of all registered businesses in Thailand, accounting for 86 percent of total employment and 45 percent of gross domestic production (GDP).
Yet, as of 2021,…
