The International Finance Corporation (IFC)

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is the private sector arm of the World Bank Group – lending to private clients such as companies, banks and private equity funds.

Founded in 1956, its stated mission is to “leverage the power of the private sector for global good.”

The IFC works in over 100 countries, and has 186 member countries, much the same as the World Bank. It has the same Board as the World Bank, with shares dominated by the US, with a 20% voting power, and European countries, which together hold 25%. In 2023, it had a total portfolio of $43.7 billion.

As well as being a major investor, the IFC is also a global standard setter. Its Performance Standards form the basis of the Equator Principles, which have been endorsed by over 120 private financial institutions worldwide.

Recourse’s work on the International Finance Corporation

Recourse focuses on the IFC’s lending to financial intermediaries – third parties such as commercial banks and private equity funds. This type of lending is inherently risky since it relies on the IFC’s client to uphold social and environmental standards.

Working with our partners and allies, Recourse has tracked and exposed IFC’s links through financial intermediaries to human rights abuses, climate-wrecking coal plants, and harms to indigenous communities.
Our campaigns have succeeded in prompting many deep reforms at IFC, making it more accountable and transparent and reducing its high risk activities. For example, in 2023 we secured a commitment from IFC to stop its clients funding new coal projects.
We have pushed the IFC closer to remedying the harms caused by its investments, via its Compliance Advisor Ombudsman (CAO). For example, our work on the CIFI case in Guatemala resulted in the IFC developing a ‘responsible exit strategy’ so that it cannot simply walk away from harms it has caused if it exits a project early.
Since 2023, Recourse has been scrutinising the IFC approach to investment in large scale renewable energy and damaging transition mineral mining, and we propose more locally appropriate and sustainable approaches to just transition to renewable energy.