eco.business Fund expands access to financing for sustainable businesses in Honduras with loan of USD 20 million to Banco Atlántida

The eco.business Fund provided Banco Atlántida Honduras with a loan of USD 20 million to increase access to finance for certified businesses. The facility will support the bank’s agricultural and tourism lending program which targets companies that commit to best environmental and social practices.  

Banco Atlántida is a bank with over 100 years of experience in Honduras and demonstrated commitment to innovation and building long-term relationships with its clients by helping them anticipate market trends and opportunities around sustainable development. The bank will utilize the resources to support a wide range of businesses and crops, particularly produced or provided by clients that have a proven track record of sustainably managing their businesses. 

The partnership with Inversiones Atlántida, which includes another long-term facility for Banco Atlántida El Salvador, entails technical assistance activities to strengthen the Environmental and Social Management System and its application. This follows the group’s endeavor to place sustainability principles at the core of its operations and continue supporting responsible producers. The eco.business Development Facility will support increasing institutional knowledge on environmental management and provide workshops on the underlying principles of eligible sustainability standards – highlighting the benefits of growing a portfolio with certified companies. 

Dr. Jens Mackensen, Chairperson of the Board of Directors of the eco.business Fund, stated: “The investment presents an opportunity to strengthen the efforts of preserving the country’s rich biodiversity through their dedicated financing of certified agrobusinesses. Banco Atlántida is an optimal actor to achieve this as it actively encourages sustainable business practices among its agribusiness clients.’’

This banking institution reaffirms its commitment to the regional development by boosting the productive sectors through financing opportunities that have generated positive impacts on the environment. Mr. Guillermo Bueso, Banco Atlántida CEO, conveyed: “Our regional operations are committed to supporting sustainable businesses; therefore, the alliance with the eco.business Fund represents a great opportunity to continue encouraging responsible practices among our clients, which leads to greater growth and competitiveness. ”

About the eco.business Fund

The eco.business Fund aims to promote business and consumption practices that contribute to biodiversity conservation, to the sustainable use of natural resources, and to mitigate climate change and adapt to its impacts in Latin America, the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa. By providing financing for business practices that conserve nature and foster biodiversity, the fund seeks investments with both environmental and financial returns. The eco.business Fund provides financing through three avenues: local financial institutions that are committed to the fund’s mission and which have the capacity to reach its target group; directly to its target group (i.e. companies and producers); and in the case of sub-Saharan Africa, to real sector intermediaries. The fund supports sustainable operations in the sectors of agriculture, fishery (including aquaculture), forestry and tourism. Target beneficiaries are those that hold an eligible sustainability certification or those taking out a loan to make eligible sustainable investments in their operations

An impact investment fund advised by Finance in Motion, the eco.business Fund was initiated by Germany’s KfW Development Bank and Conservation International with financial support from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ). The sub-fund for Latin America and the Caribbean has received further support from the European Commission. The sub-fund’s additional investor base comprises IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, the U.K. government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Dutch development bank FMO, Austrian development bank OeEB, and institutional investors such as sustainable banking institution ASN Bank, German ethical bank GLS Bank, Calvert Impact Capital, and Raiffeisen Bank International. Finance in Motion, a leading impact investing company, is also an investor.

Operating together with each of the two sub-funds, are two development facilities that provide high-impact technical assistance to investment partners and final borrowers.

For more information please visit www.ecobusiness.fund and follow us on Twitter @ecobusinessfund.

About Banco Atlántida 

Banco Atlántida, founded in Honduras in 1913, is part of Inversiones Atlántida S.A. (INVATLAN), holding company of Atlántida Financial Group. INVATLAN also has operations in El Salvador and Nicaragua serving the segments of Retail, SMEs and Corporate Banking under a philosophy of integrity, quality and innovation.

Banco Atlántida has established itself as a leading banking institution in Honduras. It offers the largest service network in the country with a multichannel electronic banking platform and holds strong relationships with a prestigious international network of correspondent banks.

For more information please visit www.bancatlan.hn and follow us on our social networks.