Tunisie Leasing is a leasing institution which was established in 1984 to provide lease financing to the Tunisian private sector and has grown to be the leading leasing company in Tunisia with a 29% market share. It has also diversified into other financial services through its investments in subsidiaries involved in factoring, venture capital, brokerage, asset management, and call centers. Tunisie Leasing is 50.1%-owned by the Amen Bank Group and is listed on the Tunisian Stock exchange. Tunisie Leasing has played a major role in setting up MLA as the technical assistance provider and the largest shareholder.

Amen Bank was founded in 1971 as Credit Foncier de Tunisie. Its ownership structure is mainly held by private Tunisian interests. Its principal shareholder is the Ben Yedder family. Amen Bank is Tunisia’s fifth-largest bank and the second largest private sector bank. Amen Bank is listed on the Tunisian Stock exchange.

MLA’s shareholding structure is as follows: Tunisie Leasing (30%), Amen Bank (21%) IFC (17%), FMO (17%), Proparco (8%), Maghreb Private Equity Fund (4%), and CFAO (3%).

The Project is consists of a repeat investment for an IFC guarantee of DZD650 mn ($ 9.1mn equivalent ) to enable MLA to obtain local currency funding from a local bank.

9.70 million (USD)

Product Line	IFC Investment (million USD)
Risk Management
Guarantee	9.70
Loan
Equity

* These investment figures are indicative

The headquarters and first branch of MLA are located in Algiers, Algeria. MLA opened a new branch in Setif in 2008.

The proposed project is expected to have a high development impact in the following areas:

Access to finance for SMEs: The project will provide SMEs with increased access to finance, many for the first time in the formal financial sector.

Increased private sector competition in the financial sector: The project is expected to promote growth and increase competition in the financial sector as the leasing industry grows and brings new players and instruments into the market.

Transfer of leasing know-how and best practice: The project will reinforce the transfer of new technologies and know-how in leasing activities. Tunisie Leasing, which has established a strong franchise in Tunisia has brought to bear its management, operational and technological expertise to this project

IFC’s role will be to provide continuous support to the growth of a successful portfolio client focusing on the underserved SME segment and to facilitate access to new sources of local currency funding for larger amounts and/or longer maturities than otherwise available. In addition, IFC’s support of MLA, a south-south investment (from Tunisia to Algeria), will contribute to the development of a more integrated financial sector across North Africa.

This is a repeat investment project that involves IFC support for a leasing business and has been classified as a Category FI project according to IFC’s Environmental and Social Review Procedure. MLA has appointed a senior S&E officer and developed an S&E policy. The client has an SEMS, which needs to be strengthened, and IFC is providing support in this respect to the client. Considering the nature of activities supported and the client’s S&E performance, the project will be required to (i) upgrade its procedure relevant to its business process, prior to commitment, and ensures that all its investments are screened and processed to avoid supporting activities on the IFC exclusion list, and ensures that the use of the leased equipment complies with the applicable National laws; (ii) demonstrate commitment and resources to implementing the procedure; (iii) demonstrate commitment to applying the labor standards established by the IFC Performance Standard 2; (iv) when leasing to business activities with potentially significant environmental and social risks (e.g., mining, oil production), inquire and review S&E information available in the public domain and avoid leasing to businesses that have substantial unresolved environmental and social issues; (v) submit a periodic report to IFC as per a format to be provided by IFC.