Representatives of OCB and IFC at the signing ceremony in HCM City. — VNS Photo

Orient Commercial Joint Stock Bank (OCB) has received a US$40 million loan from the IFC, a member of the World Bank, to support small and medium-sized enterprises affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The money is expected to help the bank increase its liquidity to keep lending and extend repayment periods for existing business customers.

OCB said the “timely” loan would play an important part in helping its customers face the unprecedented crisis.

It would support the development of SMEs and the recovery of the economy, it said.

The bank plans to lend to businesses in sectors severely impacted by the pandemic such as tourism and manufacturing and those like drug and healthcare equipment producers.

Nguyen Dinh Tung, its CEO, said to support small and medium-sized enterprises, the bank has been reviewing the situation.

The IFC said the pandemic has severely affected businesses in Viet Nam, especially small and medium-sized ones, which have been a major driver of economic growth over the last two decades.

The IFC loan is for one year.

Since the outbreak began, OCB has had many programmes to help companies stabilise their production, especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), including packages with preferential interest rates, free money-transaction rate, free MeInvoice by MISA to new customers, and OCB SME e-Lending.

OCB, established in 2996, is the first bank in Viet Nam to meet Basel II standards. — VNS