51878 - Banpais SD-LTF

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Summary of Investment Information

Project Number

51878

Company Name

Banco del Pais S.A.

Date SPI Disclosed

May 16, 2026

Country

Honduras

Region

Latin America and the Caribbean

Projected Board Date

Jun 15, 2026

Environmental Category

FI-2 - Limited

Status

Pending Approval

Last Updated Date

May 19, 2026

Department

Regional Industry FIG LAC & EUR

Industry

Financial Markets

Sector

Commercial Banking - General

Project Description

The proposed investment consists of a senior and subordinated loan facility of up to US$130 million to Banco del Pais, S.A. (Banpais or the Bank) in Honduras. The financing package is comprised of: (i) 5y/1y senior loan of US$95 million, including US$25 million on IFC’s own account and US$70 million from parallel lenders; and (ii) 10y subordinated loan of US$35 million on IFC’s own account. The package will support the Bank’s lending program to small and medium enterprises (SMEs), women-owned SMEs (WSME), and sustainable finance projects, as well as strengthen the Bank’s regulatory capital through a Tier 2 instrument (the “Project”).

Associated Advisory Engagement

The implementation of a Technical Advisory provided by IFC will be evaluated together with Banpais, aimed at strengthening the Bank's capacities in relation to the sustainable finance portfolio.

Sponsor / Cost / Location

IFC's loan to the financial institution described in this SII is targeted for on-lending to the following sector(s):

Product Type	Use of Proceeds
Quasi-Equity	Loans to SME Borrowers
Quasi-Equity	Loans to Woman-Owned SMEs
Quasi-Equity	Labeled: Green;Blue;Social-Loans/Bonds
Straight Senior Loan	Loans to SME Borrowers
Straight Senior Loan	Loans to Woman-Owned SMEs
Straight Senior Loan	Labeled: Green;Blue;Social-Loans/Bonds

IFC's Definitions of Targeted Sectors can be found here.

Development Impact

The project aims to expand Banpais’ lending to Honduran SMEs, including WSME, by providing financing that supports job creation and business growth, while addressing an key financially underserved segment such as SMEs and WSMEs with an estimated large financing gap. It also seeks to scale sustainable finance by growing Banpais’ renewable energy lending to help Honduras improve energy security and help the country goals to move toward a higher renewable electricity share by 2026. At the market level, IFC expects Banpais to demonstrate sector-wide leadership by becoming an early adopter of Honduras’ 2025 national green taxonomy, strengthening climate finance identification and reporting, and encouraging other financial institutions to align with the taxonomy.

The IFC senior loan will help extend Banpais’ funding tenors and, together with the subordinated loan tranche, will bolster regulatory capital. IFC will further diversify Banpais’ funding by bringing in two parallel investors. In addition, IFC will likely provide advisory support related to the climate finance portfolio and will provide support to help strengthen its E&S risk management and alignment with IFC Performance Standards for the climate finance portfolio.

Indicator	Metrics	Calendar Year 2022	Calendar Year 2023	Calendar Year 2024
Number of Outstanding Loans, SMEs	number	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available
SME share of total loan portfolio	%	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available
Value of Outstanding Loans, Climate	$	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available
Value of Outstanding Loans, SMEs	$	Not Available	Not Available	Not Available

E&S Category Rationale / Risks and Mitigation

The proposed Project consists of a financing package Banpais to strengthen the Bank’s capacity to offer longer-term loans to SMEs, women-owned businesses, and eligible sustainable sub-projects such as blue, renewable energy, energy efficiency and transport projects in Honduras. The main E&S risks and impacts related to the Project derive from the Bank’s capacity to assess and manage E&S risks of sub-projects in line with E&S requirements. These may include reputational, supply chain, child and forced labor, gender-based violence and harassment, occupational health and safety, wages, overtime, fair employment conditions, life and fire safety, emergency response, land-use change and degradation, pollution prevention and atmospheric emissions, waste and wastewater management, hazardous materials and biodiversity risk. Therefore, the Project has been categorized as FI-2 in accordance with IFC’s Sustainability Policy. The Project will not support coal related activities and Higher Risk Transactions (HRT) that may include: (i) involuntary resettlement, (ii) risk of adverse impacts on Indigenous Peoples, (iii) significant risks to or impacts on the environment, community health and safety, biodiversity, cultural heritage (iv) risk of retrenchment, or (v) significant occupational health and safety risks to employees.
The applicable requirements for this Project are the (i) IFC Exclusion List, (ii) Applicable E&S laws in Honduras, (iii) IFC Performance Standards as applicable for eligible sustainable sub-projects of industrial scale. The Bank will also be required to apply IFC Performance Standard 2 on Labor and Working Conditions and Life and Fire Safety requirements. Finally, the client will provide an annual E&S performance report to IFC.

Banpais has appointed dedicated E&S capacity and developed an ESMS that is partially aligned with IFC requirements for this Project. While the ESMS is generally aligned with IFC requirements for SME financing and includes screening against exclusion lists, applicable E&S laws, HRT identification, and selected IFC Performance Standards, key gaps relate to sustainable sub-projects. These include the need for stronger alignment of the sub-project categorization process with IFC criteria, the explicit integration of relevant IFC Performance Standard requirements for sustainable sub-projects, improvements to the project-level External Communication Mechanism (ECM), and additional E&S expertise to ensure adequate coverage and oversight of sustainable sub-projects. A review of the Bank’s HR policies indicates that certain areas would benefit from further strengthening, including the explicit recognition of freedom of association, the formalization of a gender-based violence and harassment policy, and closer alignment of life and fire safety provisions with IFC requirements.
To address these gaps, the Bank will enhance its ESMS to explicitly cover all eligible sustainable sub-projects, including the integration of systematic reputational risk screening, strengthened E&S capacity through additional qualified resources, and improvements to the project-level ECM. The Bank will also update its emergency preparedness and response framework for publicly accessible buildings. In parallel, Banpais will strengthen its HR framework by explicitly recognizing freedom of association, prohibiting retaliation, and developing and implementing a gender-based violence and harassment policy aligned with good international practice, including integration into the grievance mechanism.

S.no	Title	Anticipated Completion Date
1	Enhance ESMS	01/13/2027
2	Appoint Additional E&S Officer/Hire External E&S Consultant	07/12/2027
3	Enhance External Communication Mechanism (ECM)	07/17/2028
4	Manage the life and fire safety risks	01/13/2027
5	Enhance HR policies	03/14/2027

Contacts

For Inquiries About the Project, Contact

Banco del Pais, S.A.
Daniel Martinez
CFO
+504 2566 2020
danielm@banpais.hn
Edificio Torre Banpais, 2to. Nivel. Blv. Jose Antonio Peraza, San Pedro Sula.
www.banpais.hn

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