LB Finance lands $35M debt deal from Norfund and Swedfund
What's the deal? LB FinanceDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Sri Lanka's second-largest non-bank financial institution, has secured $35 million in long-term debt funding from two European development finance institutions.
Norway's NorfundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → committed $20 million and Sweden's SwedfundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → $15 million. It marks the first partnership between LB Finance and either institution.
The money will fund micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), climate-smart agricultural technology, and electric and fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles.
Why now? Long-term funding remains scarce in Sri Lanka, and the deal aims to channel capital to smaller businesses that traditional lenders often overlook.
"Access to finance is critical for MSMEs to invest, grow and create jobs," said Björn Areskog, investment director at Swedfund. He noted LB Finance's reach beyond Colombo as a key draw.
The company, which holds total assets above Rs. 400 billion and an A-(lka) rating from FitchDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, describes itself as in an "exponential growth stage."
What could go wrong? As debt, the facilities add to LB Finance's obligations at a time of constrained credit conditions in Sri Lanka.
The DFIs are also betting on the firm tightening its environmental, social, and governance standards — a framework LB Finance says it still needs to align with global best practices.
The signal: Development finance institutions are increasingly stepping in where commercial lenders hesitate, using long-term debt to push financial inclusion and greener transport across emerging markets. For NorfundDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, which invested a record NOK 8.4 billion in 2025 across a NOK 45.5 billion portfolio supporting 788,000 jobs, backing a mature player like LB Finance fits a broader strategy of channelling capital into resilient businesses in developing economies.
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Image credit: Generated with Gemini
