The African Export Import Bank (Afreximbank) announces that it has raised $520 million to finance aid to African countries shaken by the Covid-19 pandemic. The loan was led by Japan's MUFG Bank, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group.

The operation was covered by Nippon Export and Investment Insurance, Japan's government trade and investment insurance agency. The Facility will also finance trade and trade-related investment.

This issue represents the third  samurai loan after those of 2017 and 2019, including the largest Samurai loan ever granted to an African issuer.

Afreximbank says it expects "strong and sustainable development results through the effective implementation of this facility, including job creation, increased economic activities and increased tax revenues for governments in financial difficulty, among other results'.

In March, the institution launched a $3 billion facility to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and mitigate the risk of commercial defaults, support foreign exchange reserves, and help commodity exporters struggling with declining incomes.