World Bank Group's arm, InternationalFinance Corp., is lending $50 million to Banco Patagonia SA to expand the bank's long-term lendingto small and medium enterprises in Argentina.

The financing, which will last five years, aims to support afavorable investment climate by promoting productive investments in the country,the IFC said in a July 15 statement.

Presently, Banco Patagonia is Argentina's primary SME lenderand assists more than 42,000 companies that are mostly in the agribusiness sector,the IFC noted.