Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Microfinance Holdings NV, a Dutch private-equity holding company owned by Development Finance Equity (DFE) Partners’ Balkan Financial Sector Equity Fund (BFSEF) of the Netherlands and US-based private-equity fund Creation Investments Capital Management, recently announced the purchase of three microfinance institutions (MFIs) located in Albania, Poland and Russia.
The first MFI, Opportunity Albania, is a non-banking financial institution based in Tirana, Albania, that was purchased from Opportunity Transformation Investments Incorporated of the US. Opportunity Albania reports serving 16,000 clients through its 23 branches. The second MFI is Inicjatywa Mikro, a non-banking financial institution purchased from Opportunity Microfinance Investments Limited of the United Kingdom. It reports serving 2,000 clients and is headquartered in Krakow, Poland. Lastly Forus Bank based in Nizhniy Novgorod, Russia, is a registered bank serving 10,000 customers through a 42-branch network that was purchased from the Fora Fund of Russia. Clive Moody, Managing Partner of DFE Partners, who negotiated the transactions, said he hopes this new acquisition will allow for the development of a common business model among the three MFIs and create possibilities for future acquisitions.
Please see below for financial details on the MFIs acquired:
About Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Microfinance Holdings NV: CEE Microfinance Holdings NV is a Dutch, public, limited-liability company that owns institutions that lend to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises in markets that are financially under-served, with a focus on the Central and Eastern European regions. It is owned by the Balkan Financial Sector Equity Fund CV of the Netherlands and Creation Investments Social Ventures Fund I of the US.
About Opportunity Albania: Opportunity Albania is a non-banking financial microfinance institution (MFI) founded in 1999 in Tirana, Albania. It provides business loans to help the development of Albanian microenterprises. As of December 2009, Opportunity Albania reports to the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) that it has USD 55.6 million in assets, approximately 16,000 active borrowers, a gross loan portfolio of USD 43.3 million, return on assets of 0.02 percent and return on equity of 0.12 percent.
About Inicjatywa Mikro: Inicjatiwa Mikro is a non-banking microfinance institution (MFI) established in 1996 in Krakow, Poland. It offers loans to support existing and new small businesses, with loans as low as PLN 1,000 (USD 339). Inicjatiwa Mikro reports to the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) that it has USD 11.3 million in assets, 1,700 active borrowers, a gross loan portfolio of USD 10.1 million, return on assets of -0.97 percent and return on equity -1.58 percent.
About Forus Bank: Forus Bank is a microfinance institution (MFI) founded in Nizhniy Novgorod in 2005 by the Fora Fund, a non-profit microfinance organization in Russia. Forus Bank offers financial services for micro- and small businesses, covering 10,000 customers through a 42-branch network. Forus Bank reports to the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) USD 38.9 million in assets, a gross loan portfolio of USD 32.9 million, return on assets of -11.20 percent and return on equity of -85.64 percent.
By Diana Baide, Research Assistant
Sources and Additional Sources:
[1] Press Release supplied to MicroCapital by Creation Investments.
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) Microfinance Holdings NV
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=CEE+Microfinance+Holdings+NV
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Opportunity Albania
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Opportunity+Albania
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Inicjatiwa Mikro
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Inicjatiwa+Mikro
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Forus Bank
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Forus+Bank
Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php
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