The SANAD Fund for MSME (SANAD) has granted a senior loan of USD 5 million to The National Bank (TNB), marking the fund’s first banking sector investment in Palestine. The main goal of the loan is to support TNB’s lending to micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as to low-income households for home improvement and purchase.

TNB is the third largest bank in Palestine and is solely focused on the West Bank and East Jerusalem area. In recent years, the bank has transformed itself from a small microfinance bank into a full-service commercial bank. TNB is one of only two banks in Palestine offering micro loans and has a particular focus on these underserved clients, for whom it has developed specialized products and programs. In addition to general microfinance lending, TNB specifically offers micro loans to women entrepreneurs and homeowners. The bank also plans to increase its focus on the empowerment of youth through the development of new products.

Chairman of TNB, Talal Nasereddin said: “We are very glad to sign this agreement, which supports our strategy for expanding our lending portfolio for MSMEs; the bank will launch new MSME lending products early next year to support this approach. MSMEs are the backbone of the Palestinian national economy, contributing to job creation and increasing the financial inclusion ratios in Palestine.”

SANAD Board Chairperson Dr. Daniela Beckmann said, “Given TNB’s existing initiatives catering to SANAD’s own target group of MSMEs and low-income households, we are confident that TNB will prove an effective partner in uplifting the socio-economic profile of the residents of the Palestinian Territories, especially of women and youth.”

About the SANAD Fund for MSME

Established in 2011, the SANAD Fund for MSME finances micro, small and medium enterprises and low-income households in the Middle East and North Africa via qualified local lenders. SANAD thereby fosters economic development and job creation – including youth employment – agriculture, affordable housing, and innovations in finance and financial technologies. SANAD strives to meet these goals by providing debt and equity financing to its local partners. The SANAD Technical Assistance Facility multiplies the fund’s development impact and outreach through capacity-building with partner institutions, developing financial infrastructures according to the principles of responsible finance and conducting much required R&D.SANAD’s investors include the KfW Development Bank, which initiated the fund; the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ); the European Union; Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO); OeEB, the Development Bank of Austria; Germany’s GLS Bank and GLS Treuhand; and the Dutch development bank FMO. A public-private partnership, the fund is advised by Finance in Motion GmbH, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

For more information, please visitwww.sanad.lu