BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 2. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (SMBC) have launched a $500 million supply chain finance facility aimed at expanding access to affordable working capital for small and medium-sized businesses in emerging markets, IFC said.
The facility is designed to help smaller businesses receive faster payment for invoices, strengthen their financial resilience and support employment in the communities where they operate.
Under the program, financing is anchored to the credit strength of large buyers rather than individual suppliers, allowing smaller businesses, many of them SMEs, to receive early payment at rates they may not otherwise be able to access.
The first anchor buyer participating in the facility is a large food manufacturer in Latin America, while the model is designed to expand to additional buyers across sectors and markets, according to IFC.
The facility totals $500 million, with IFC providing up to $250 million in direct funding and SMBC contributing the remaining $250 million on equal terms.
IFC said its funded participation adds credit capacity to the system, enabling SMBC to serve a broader range of suppliers, provide longer financing tenors and support higher transaction volumes than would otherwise be commercially viable.
"Supply chain finance is one of the most effective tools to put working capital directly in the hands of small businesses in emerging markets — quickly, affordably, and at scale," said Nathalie Louat, Global Director for Trade and Supply Chain Finance at IFC.
"By partnering with SMBC and leveraging the creditworthiness of established buyers, we can reach suppliers that the market alone would not serve, giving them not just liquidity today, but the financial footing to grow their businesses and create jobs," she added.
IFC said the facility is also intended to help suppliers build a documented financial track record. By providing early payment within days of a buyer approving an invoice, the program aims to create a consistent and verifiable transaction history that can help businesses gain access to broader banking services over time.
“Supporting resilient global supply chains is a key priority for SMBC. Our partnership with IFC enhances our ability to provide working capital solutions to suppliers, enabling them to manage liquidity more effectively, support business growth, and contribute to the stability and efficiency of global trade and supply chains,” said Priyamvada Singh, Global Head of Sales, Global Trade Finance at SMBC.
The facility was structured through IFC's Global Supply Chain Finance (GSCF) program, which has supported more than $3.8 billion in supplier finance transactions since its launch in 2023, IFC said.
Access to finance remains a major barrier to growth for businesses in emerging markets, with the MSME financing gap estimated at trillions of dollars, according to IFC.
The facility comes as emerging market and developing economies face weak growth, high financing costs and a significant investment shortfall. The World Bank projects global growth at 2.5% in 2026 and says EMDEs are experiencing the weakest per capita income growth since the pandemic. Aggregate government debt in developing economies has risen from less than 40% of GDP in 2010 to more than 70%, putting additional pressure on borrowing costs and fiscal space.
The World Bank has also identified a broader investment gap in developing economies, noting that investment growth has slowed to about half its pace in the 2000s. It says private investment will need to play a greater role in financing growth, job creation and development as public budgets remain constrained.
