Multibanco started operations on June 14, 1995, the Bank was created through the conversion of Financiera Asuncion, a 22-year old Financial institution, into a bank, through Central Bank Resolution. The bank is part of a small financial and service group linked by common ownership called Grupo Asunción. The project consisted of a long term loan of US$5 million to Multibanco for on- lending to eligible Paraguayan SMEs, mainly for export-related or import substitution projects. Subloans were made in US dollars with minimum of two year to maximum of eight year maturities, at an expected spread over cost of funds from 300 bps to 600 bps according to credit risk evaluation. Maximum subloan amounts did not exceed US$500,000 to finance the acquisition of fixed assets and working capital. Financing of working capital was restricted to 30% of the line. Resources were used to finance industrial, consumer, and service sectors such as transport, plastic, agribusiness, construction, metalworking, and food and food processing, tele communications, tourism.