Call for Expression of Interest: Partial Credit Guarantee Facility

Colorful market stalls with baskets of produce; woman on her phone, man with money.

Call for Expression of Interest: Partial Credit Guarantee Facility

February 16, 2026

OVERVIEW

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in partnership with Koma Capital, invites EOIs from licensed and regulated Banks operating in Malawi to access up to USD 750,000 Portfolio Partial Credit Guarantee (PCG) under CATALYZE Malawi Project.

The purpose of this EOI is to identify eligible Banks interested in partnering with UNDP and Koma Capital to deploy a portfolio-based risk-sharing instrument that supports increased lending to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malawi. The PCG is intended to reduce credit risk for participating Banks and unlock additional local capital for SMEs operating in priority sectors aligned with national development objectives and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

This opportunity is designed to create a demonstration effect that can crowd in additional partial credit guarantee coverage from other guarantee providers through the Koma Guarantee Marketplace. By generating credible performance data and implementation learnings, the Facility aims to support replication and scale so participating Banks can expand SME lending beyond the initial PCG envelope.

Submission of an EOI does not constitute a commitment by UNDP or Koma Capital to provide a guarantee, nor does it imply selection or approval.

The EOI is a market-sounding and pipeline identification exercise only.

TARGET SEGMENTS AND SECTORS

This EOI aims at a targeted pipeline for deal sourcing. Banks will follow their investment management process while assessing applicants’ potential for PCG supported deployment.

ELEGIBILITY CRITERIA

UNDP invites financial service providers that are in need of a PCG as a de-risking instrument to support a portfolio of SMEs to grow their business to submit information on their development impact.

A first automatic scan will be done based on the following criteria:

Criteria	Source of verification
Must be a formally registered and licensed Bank in Malawi.	Proof of registration
Must be a for profit, non-profit or public private partnership (no individuals or public sector entities are eligible).	Proof of registration
Entity should have outreach to Malawian SMEs. Demonstrate experience and capacity in SME lending.	Company pitch deck
Entity shall have fulfilled all the obligations relating to the payment of social security contributions or obligations relating to the payment of taxes in accordance with legal provisions.	Official national fiscal authority certificate (to be verified if shortlisted)
Entity must comply with relevant standards, regulations, and applicable legislation to which they may be subject and possess required regulatory approvals, licenses, and certificates for their operations.	Certificates and license proofs (to be verified if shortlisted)
Entity shall have a minimum of three (3) years of audited financial statements or be in process of obtaining audited financials	Audited Financial statement(s) (to be verified if shortlisted)
Compliance with non-involvement standards of financial frauds, notable large-scale financial fraud cases, including anti-money laundering.	Bank testimony (to be verified if shortlisted)
Compliance with prudential regulations and guidelines, incl. corporate governance measures and risk management procedures.	Certificates and license proofs (to be verified if shortlisted)

HOW TO APPLY

The applicant must submit a complete application technical proposal form via email to catalyze.malawi@undp.org. All submissions must be completed in English. Only applications that follow the submission format and include all the necessary documentation will be considered.

The application template includes financial information such as revenue, EBITDA, profit and leverage ratios for the last 3 years, if available (in USD or local currency, and as available depending on lifetime of organization) alongside other organization information. Interested applicants may upload additional external documents to their email.

The following documents should be requested at the email catalyze.malawi@undp.org to facilitate your review and application:

Full Expression of Interest (EOI)
Financial Service Providers (FSPs) Application Proposal template

EOIs not completed in the proposal format and submitted after the deadline will not be considered.