FIRST MERCHANT BANK OF ZIMBABWE-LOAN

completed

Summary Of Project Information (SPI)Project NameZimbabwe-First Merchant Bank of ZimbabweRegionSub-Saharan AfricaSectorProject No008637Projected Board DateDecember 12, 1997Company NameFirst Merchant Bank Zimbabwe LimitedTechnical Partner and/or Major Shareholders FMB is a listed bank. The other major shareholders are Anglo-American Co.(28%), Heritage Investment Bank 22%, Old Mutual Investment Corporation (16%) and IFC (9%).      Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment US$15 millionLocation of project and Description of site ZimbabweDescription of Company and Purpose of Project The project involves an IFC term-loan of up-to US$15 million to be used for trade and project finance by export-oriented small and medium-size enterprises in the productive sector of the Zimbabwean Economy.IFC’s loan would serve to channel much-needed foreign exchange term-finance resources to fund the operations and expansion needs of private Zimbabwean enterprises.Environmental Category and Issues This is a Category FI project according to IFC’s environmental Review Procedures. For relevant project finance operations, FMB will be required to do an environmental review of eligible investee operations. As this is IFC’s first loan (since the introduction of Environmental Guidelines) to FMB, IFC will assess FMB’s capacity to conduct environmental review.Date SPI sent to PIC October 22, 1997“This Summary of Project Information is prepared and distributed to the public in advance of consideration of the proposed transaction by the Corporation’s Board of Directors. It is provided for the purpose of enhancing the transparency of IFC’s activities and should not be construed as presuming the outcome of IFC Board consideration.”For Additional Information contact: Corporate Relations Unit -telephone: (202) 473-7711facsimile: (202) 974-4384