IFC Invests in Panamanian Financial Group

Following a string of financings for Panama’s Grupo Mundial, the IFC has paid $15.6m for a 9.9% equity stake in the financial conglomerate. The deal, to be signed today, follows a $30m equity stake taken in August 2007 and a $50m credit facility, also done in 2007. “The IFC’s current equity investment in Grupo Mundial is a complement to the equity stake we obtained in August 2007. You could also see this as a two-step equity contribution which has gradually kicked in as the group continues to grow and expands beyond Panama,” James Scriven, IFC’s director for LatAm and Africa financial markets, tells LatinFinance.