Financiera Arrendadora Centramericana, S.A.

MIGA has issued guarantees of $0.69 million and $0.71 million to Corporacion Interfin, S.A. of Costa Rica for its $0.77 million equity investment in, and $0.75 million shareholder loan to, Financiera Arrendadora Centramericana, S.A. (Finarca) of Nicaragua. The equity investment is guaranteed for a period of fifteen years and the loan guarantee for a period of ten years, and both provide coverage against the risks of transfer restriction, expropriation, and war and civil disturbance.

The project consists of the expansion of Finarca's lease financing program, which will be for the most part devoted to SMEs. Founded in 1996, the project enterprise was the first financial leasing company to operate in the industrial sector of Nicaragua, and has since specialized in the leasing of agricultural, industrial, transportation and construction equipment to local enterprises.

Numerous development impacts should result from the project. Finarca's leasing program will create direct and indirect local employment. The increase of financial services will facilitate the use of modern equipment in the agricultural and industrial sectors, which are key to the economic development of Nicaragua. The project addresses three of MIGA's priority areas: a south-south investment and an investment in a SME, and in an IDA-eligible country.