US firm earmarks $500m to govt, businesses
An international finance company, Nationwide Finance, has set aside US$500 million to be used to support the government and private companies to expand and contribute towards the rebound in total economic output to be measured by gross domestic product (GDP).
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The amount is the baseline of the company’s financial support to the public and private sectors but could be doubled to US$1 billion should there be increased appetite in excess of the US$500 million, Nationwide Finance’s President, Mr Ed Kostenski, said in an interview.
“I know US$500 million is not enough but the number can vary; it can go much higher but it all depends on the organsation, the resource and manpower to be able to launch on to, say US$1 billion, and that is what we want to see,” Mr Kostenski, who is in Ghana for business meetings with government officials and business executives, told the Daily Graphic on February 28.
While the support to the private sector is expected to help stimulate growth in the beneficiary companies, those to be channelled into the public sector could help fund special projects that will aid growth and job creation.
Revitalising the brand
Nationwide Finance, a United States of America (USA)-based financier, specialises in the provision of bank and corporate guarantees, refinancing, export credit agency (ECA) financing and public financing, which it has been undertaking for decades.
Although not sector bias, the company is noted for providing financial support to companies in the construction, mining and manufacturing sectors
Despite making its debut entry into the country some six years ago, the company, a subsidiary of The Nationwide Group of Companies, has been on the quiet, as the appetite of companies for extra capital to grow and expand went down considerably.
After monitoring developments from afar, Mr Kostenski said his outfit was now confident that growth in the private sector would pick up this year after large fiscal deficits combined with the erratic power supply to subdue growth in businesses in the past three years.
Strong entrance
After making a strong impact in project financing in other parts of the world, Nationwide Finance is now extending its expertise into virgin markets, with Africa being of big interest to it.
Consequently, Mr Kostenski recently completed a three-week tour of selected African countries that centred on exploring new opportunities for growth and expansion.
While in Ghana, he said his outfit had been meeting some key officials in government and in the private sector to deliberate on how the two could leverage Nationwide Finance’s expertise in project financing to grow their businesses and the country in general.