PETALING JAYA, September 14, 2026 – GX Bank Berhad (GXBank) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group focused on the private sector, inked a landmark first for a Malaysian digital bank in a risk-sharing partnership. Under the partnership, IFC will provide up to US$4.95 million in unfunded first-loss coverage.
This will protect and scale GXBank's lending portfolio to unserved and underserved, beginning with micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and supports a target MSME loan portfolio of up to US$110 million. By absorbing initial default risks on uncovered assets, the facility complements existing local guarantee frameworks, enabling GXBank to safely extend credit to "thin-file" businesses without traditional financial track records or physical collateral.
Beyond direct risk mitigation, backing from a AAA-rated multilateral institution enhances GXBank’s capital efficiency under Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) frameworks. By lowering the risk-weighted capital required for these loans, the facility frees up essential balance sheet capacity - allowing the digital bank to safely deploy more automated credit to underserved entrepreneurs without slowing its growth trajectory.
"This partnership with IFC is an international vote of confidence in GXBank’s proprietary risk engines and operational maturity," said Kaushik Chowdhury, Chief Executive Officer of GXBank. "Micro-entrepreneurs form the foundation of Malaysia’s economy, yet traditional collateral requirements leave vast credit demand unmet. By combining our technology-led underwriting with IFC’s first-loss credit protection and local guarantee schemes like Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia (CGC), we can sustainably scale access to capital for underserved business owners while keeping our balance sheet resilient. The impact of our model is already tangible - 15,000 MSMEs have opened digital accounts with us, leading to more than 5,000 loan drawdowns to date."
"Expanding access to finance for micro, small, and medium enterprises is a key driver for inclusive economic growth across emerging markets," said Allen Forlemu, Regional Industry Director, Financial Institutions Group, International Finance Corporation (IFC). "This collaboration demonstrates how digital innovation can help bridge financing gaps for underserved MSMEs, supporting business expansion, job creation, and stronger economic resilience in Malaysia."
The IFC partnership reinforces GXBank’s broader strategy to address the credit gap and limited access to financing facing 97.4% of Malaysian MSMEs. Recent targeted initiatives have yielded positive traction:
