Financiera Arrendadora Centroamericana, S.A. Summary Of Project Information (SPI)       Project Name:    Nicaragua: Financiera Arrendadora Centroamericana S.A. (Finarca)      Region:Latin America and Caribbean   Sector:   Project No:009145   Projected Board Date:May 7, 1999   Company Name:Financiera Arrendadora Centroamericana S.A. (Finarca)   Technical Partner and/or Major Shareholders    	Finarca is a family owned company founded in September 1996 by Dr. Adolfo McGregor, a Nicaraguan national, and his father, Alberto McGregor. Dr. McGregor is the President and Chairman of the Board of Finarca, with responsibility for the day-to-day operations of the Company. Finarca is negotiating a technical assistance agreement with a major Latin American leasing company that may also participate as an equity investor.      Project Cost Including proposed IFC investment    	A credit line of up to US$1.5 million and an equity investment for up to 25% of the share capital which is expected to be about US$ 500,000.    Location of project and Description of site    	Managua, Nicaragua    Description of Company and Purpose of Project    	The project is to support the growth and development of Finarca, which began operating in January 1997 and is one of only two leasing companies currently active in Nicaragua, and would thus help develop the Nicaraguan leasing industry as a source of medium- and long-term financing for capital goods. IFC would play an important institution-building role in this project.  IFCs credit line and equity participation will solidify the companys funding base, position it for future growth as the leasing market develops in Nicaragua, and enhance the Companys ability to obtain medium and long-term dollar funding from private lenders.  In addition, through its close involvement with the company during the start-up phase and its representation on the Companys Board of Directors, IFC will assist Finarca in implementing international best practices with respect to accounting and reporting, credit analysis, funding and other aspects of financial leasing.  IFC also has assisted in developing the regulatory framework for Nicaraguas leasing industry, through the use of trust funds to commission an evaluation of the country''s pending leasing law.     Environmental Category and Issues    	This is a Financial Intermediary (FI) tier 1/tier 2 category project according to IFC''s environmental review procedure.  For the equity investment (tier 1), FINARCA will be required to implement an environmental management system for relevant operations to ensure that investments made under these operations comply with host country requirements. For the credit line (tier 2), FINARCA will be required to implement an environmental management system to ensure that investments made under the credit line comply with host country requirements, IFCs General Exclusion List and World Bank environmental and social policies. All Category A subprojects must comply in addition with World Bank guidelines and must be reviewed and cleared by IFC. FINARCA will also submit an annual environmental report.      The  is  from the InfoShop.       Date SPI sent to InfoShop:    April 2, 1999      This Summary of Project Information is prepared and distributed to the public in advance of consideration of the proposed transaction by the Corporations Board of Directors.  It is provided for the purpose of enhancing the transparency of IFCs activities and should not be construed as presuming the outcome of IFC Board consideration.    For Additional Information contact:  Corporate Relations Unit -   telephone: (202) 473-7711   facsimile: (202) 974-4384