Santiago, Chile, February 5, 2024. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group (WBG), announced the signing of a senior loan of US$200 million to Santander Chile to support the expansion of the Bank's mortgage portfolio, exclusively targeting women-owned housing.
The financing aims to close Chile's housing finance gap by enhancing access to housing loans for women, addressing the housing deficit, inadequate living conditions, and gender disparities in financial access.
"IFC's support to Banco Santander Chile not only bridges the access gap to housing finance for women but also enhances the overall impact of financial inclusion. This initiative is a powerful catalyst, sending a compelling signal to inspire other financial institutions to elevate and expand their gender-focused lending programs," commented Manuela Adl, IFC's Senior Regional Manager, Southern Cone.
Patricia Pérez, Banco Santander's Head of Asset & Liability Management (ALM), stated that "women empowerment through financing their projects, as is the case of buying a home, is fundamental in our strategy. We are convinced that this is the right path to contribute to the sustainable development of the communities we are a part of. This is also part of the approach we have globally to impulse a more responsible bank."
Through knowledge, innovation, and capacity building, IFC looks forward to supporting Santander Chile in refining its gender-focused strategy. This commitment aims to play a pivotal role in fostering increased gender inclusion throughout Chile, aligning with broader societal equity and empowerment goals.
The investment is aligned with IFC's broader strategic goal of ensuring financial and social inclusion, as well as with the World Bank's Gender Strategy of removing barriers to women's ownership and control of assets. Bridging gender inequality gaps were identified as a cross-cutting challenge affecting private sector productivity in Chile, as per the WBG's Country Private Sector Diagnostic completed in mid-2022.
About IFC
IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, the IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
Stay Connected with IFC on social media.
About Banco Santander
The financing aims to close Chile's housing finance gap by enhancing access to housing loans for women, addressing the housing deficit, inadequate living conditions, and gender disparities in financial access.
"IFC's support to Banco Santander Chile not only bridges the access gap to housing finance for women but also enhances the overall impact of financial inclusion. This initiative is a powerful catalyst, sending a compelling signal to inspire other financial institutions to elevate and expand their gender-focused lending programs," commented Manuela Adl, IFC's Senior Regional Manager, Southern Cone.
Patricia Pérez, Banco Santander's Head of Asset & Liability Management (ALM), stated that "women empowerment through financing their projects, as is the case of buying a home, is fundamental in our strategy. We are convinced that this is the right path to contribute to the sustainable development of the communities we are a part of. This is also part of the approach we have globally to impulse a more responsible bank."
Through knowledge, innovation, and capacity building, IFC looks forward to supporting Santander Chile in refining its gender-focused strategy. This commitment aims to play a pivotal role in fostering increased gender inclusion throughout Chile, aligning with broader societal equity and empowerment goals.
The investment is aligned with IFC's broader strategic goal of ensuring financial and social inclusion, as well as with the World Bank's Gender Strategy of removing barriers to women's ownership and control of assets. Bridging gender inequality gaps were identified as a cross-cutting challenge affecting private sector productivity in Chile, as per the WBG's Country Private Sector Diagnostic completed in mid-2022.
About IFC
IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, the IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.
Stay Connected with IFC on social media.
About Banco Santander
Banco Santander Chile is the largest bank in the Chilean market. As of September 30, 2023, it has total assets of $72,491 billion, total gross loans at amortized cost of $40,139 billion, deposits of $28,555 billion and total equity of $4,193 billion. The BIS capital ratio is 17.1%, with a core capital ratio of 10.7%. Employs 9,077 people and has 254 branches throughout Chile. Banco Santander Chile is one of the companies with the highest risk classifications in Latin America with an A2 rating from Moody's, A- from Standard and Poor's, A+ from Japan Credit Rating Agency, AA- from HR Ratings and A from KBRA, all have a Stable Outlook.
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