The US Guarantees A $125 MillionI Loan To Botswana's Diamond Industry

The US government has finalized a deal to guarantee loans to Botswana’s diamond manufacturers through a $125 million credit agreement between Barclays Bank Botswana and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), according to a report by Chaim Even-Zohar in the latest edition of Diamond Intelligence Briefs, quoted by IDEX Online.

All in all, $333 million of credit will be available for Botswana’s manufacturers – and only its manufacturers. The amount is thought to be well above the industry’s foreseeable requirements. Other banks are expected to join the program, meaning that Botswana will also be a source of credit, not just rough diamonds.

The agreement comes at a time when banks have been making credit either harder to secure or completely withdrawing from the industry, as shown by the recent Standard Chartered decision.