Lending firm Asialink Finance Corp. said Tuesday it expects to grow rapidly in the coming years as Creador’s recent investment in the company enables it to provide more loans to small businesses for their expansion.
Creador, a leading private equity firm in South East Asia, bought an 18-percent stake in Asialink for P4 billion early this year.
Creador said in statement that its recent investment would provide Asialink necessary resources to address the significant loan requirements of unbanked small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
Creador managing director Omar Mahmoud said Asialink “is just scratching the surface of providing financial assistance to the SMEs”.
He noted that Asialink already served 200,000 out of the 1.2 million registered businesses in the Philippines.
“In 2022, we spoke to approximately 50 financial services companies in the country and it became clear that Asialink was the natural fit for Creador given its leading market share and long-term track record,” he said.
Asialink chief executive Robert Jordan Jr. said the company would use the fresh capital raised from Creador’s investment and other funders like local banks, development finance institutions and major international lenders to reach more of unbanked businesses so they could grow their operations, generate jobs and improve their lives.
Jordan said Asialink also plans to introduce new products and services as it bolsters its presence nationwide and improve its internal efficiencies.
Asialink’s capital is valued at over P20 billion, up from only P3 million in 1997. In 2023, Asialink forayed into the debt capital market space with the signing of the company’s P2-billion privately-placed fixed rate notes facility.
It also secured a P300-million credit line facility from Taiwan’s Cathay United Bank in April 2024.
Asialink offers collateral and non-collateral credit loans that cater to the financial needs of businesses, particularly small and medium enterprises and individuals. It aims to assist the unbanked and underserved market through its more than 86 branches nationwide.
It released over P11 billion in loans in 2023, with monthly growth recorded throughout the year. It had close to 27,000 new borrowers as 2023 drew to a close.
