STATE-OWNED Myanma Railways plans to hire consultants to monitor the US$700 million Yoma Central project and ensure it is finished on time and according to the terms of the contract. Yoma Strategic Holdings, a Singapore-listed company controlled by Mr Serge Pun, leads the consortium behind the project, which it describes as “one of the most […]
Yangon trials digital construction permit system
August 15, 2019 by
Yangon City is introducing a new digitalised construction permit scheme in an effort to improve the ease of doing business. With the support of the International Finance Corporation, the Building Control Authority of the Yangon City Development Committee (YCDC) launched the Yangon Building Permit System on July 1 and it will be piloted until the […]
IFC takes stake in Yoma Bank in first for Myanmar
June 24, 2019 by
Yoma Bank has become Myanmar’s first commercial lender with a foreign stakeholder following a decision by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to convert a US$5 million loan into a five percent equity shareholding. The IFC, the investment arm of the World Bank Group, provided the convertible loan package to Yoma Bank in 2014 to help […]
Sowing the seeds of growth in Myanmar
June 7, 2019 by
Once the rice bowl of Asia, even today, agriculture continues to be a vital contributor to Myanmar’s economy.The sector provides employment to about 53 percent of the country’s labor force and is a source of livelihood for about 70 percent of the rural population.It also contributes almost 38 percent of the country’s gross domestic product, […]
Myanmar produces first corporate governance scorecard
May 20, 2019 by
Myanmar companies need to improve their business practices to become more competitive in local and regional markets, a new report shows. The Myanmar Corporate Governance Scorecard 2018 is the first report of its kind in the country and assesses the performance of 24 companies in the country. It is published by the International Finance Corporation […]
Local hydropower association goes independent
April 30, 2019 by
The Myanmar Hydropower Developer’s Association (MHDA), led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), has now become an independent Myanmar-registered group promoting sustainable work in the country’s hydropower sector, it announced on Wednesday. Founded in 2016 as the Hydropower Developers’ Working Group, MHDA is a platform where hydropower firms and related professionals are able to support […]
Metro’s Myanmar subsidiary secures US$20m IFC loan
March 8, 2019 by
The Myanmar subsidiary of German retail group Metro AG has raised a US$20m loan from the International Finance Corporation, the private-sector arm of the World Bank. The subsidiary Metro Wholesale Myanmar is a 85pc-15pc joint venture between Frankfurt-listed Metro AG and Singapore-listed Yoma Strategic Holdings, offering one-stop wholesale food service distribution for hotels, restaurants, retailers, […]
MBF signs K2 billion funding agreement with Yoma Bank
February 6, 2019 by
Mahar Bawga Finance (MBF), a Myanmar non-banking finance institution (NBFI), and Yoma Bank last Friday signed a semi-collateralised funding agreement under which Yoma will provide MBF with K2.2 billion in funds to support its operations. The agreement, which aims to address growing borrower demand for unsecured loans for personal or business development, could see MFB […]
Rice export declines within eight months
January 8, 2019 by
Myanmar only exported over 1.5 million tons of rice and broken rice within eight months from April 1 till December 14, according to Myanmar Rice Federation (MRF). Myanmar earned about US$288 million from more than 800,000 tons of rice and broken rice export through border trade routes and over US$240 million from over 700,000 tons […]
IFC report recommends alternatives to high-risk Myitsone
January 3, 2019 by
A government-sponsored study warned against restarting the highly controversial Myitsone dam and recommended alternatives to develop the country’s hydropower sector. The final version of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) of the hydropower sector, supported by the energy and environment ministries and authored by the International Finance Corporation, has been published. The SEA involved a range […]
