To support the post-COVID-19 recovery for Colombian MSMEs, MicroVest has invested in Rentek, a financial services company specializing in commercial and industrial machinery leasing, business lending, factoring, and vehicle financing.
The $2.5m investment will support the company’s ability to expand access to financing for underserved small businesses and support their liquidity needs in a post-COVID environment.
Colombia remains one of the countries with the highest income inequality and labor market informality in Latin America (World Bank) and recently experienced one of the most severe economic recessions in its history. MSMEs in Colombia are responsible for 80% of all employment in the country, with micro-enterprises alone accounting for more than half (OECD). Of the estimated 2.5 million MSMEs in Colombia, 94.7% are microenterprises with less than 10 employees (Colombian Confederation of Chambers of Commerce) who often cite a lack of access to capital as a key challenge.
The banking sector in Colombia remains focused on serving large corporates and households at the top of the income distribution, which often leaves SMEs unable to establish a primary banking relationship.
This is MicroVest’s second loan cycle with the company.