Partially through its Financial Institutions Growth Fund, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is paying an undisclosed sum to acquire a 6.7-percent stake in Equity Group Holdings, which has banking operations in Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda. IFC and the UK government’s British International Investment (BII) also are each lending the group’s Equity Bank Kenya
Category: Deals
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bankingly of Uruguay Raises $11m in Equity Round Led by Dalus Capital to Help Financial Institutions Boost Digital Inclusion in Africa, Asia, Latin America
Uruguay’s Bankingly recently secured an investment package totalling USD 11 million, which it plans to use to expand in Latin America and Africa as well as enter Southeast Asia. Bankingly provides financial institutions with software-as-a-service (SaaS) that helps them serve customers via websites, mobile apps, chatbots and other tools, thus “facilitating the financial inclusion of millions of people…”. Bankingly CEO and Founder, Martin Naor, expressed the hope that
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Executes IIF Equity Buy into Forte Insurance to Boost Agricultural Microinsurance in Cambodia
Switzerland’s BlueOrchard Finance recently disbursed an equity placement of undisclosed size from the InsuResilience Investment Fund (IIF), a Luxembourg-domiciled public-private partnership, for IIF to buy a minority stake in Cambodia’s Forte Insurance Group. BlueOrchard’s investment director for the continent, Thibaud Ponchon, expressed confidence that the placement will “drive the penetration of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Aavishkaar India Fund VI Nets $130m for MSMEs Addressing Climate Change, Agtech, Fintech – Anchored by Public Funding from Domestic, European Sources
Aavishkaar Capital, a subsidiary of India’s Aavishkaar Group, recently completed the first close of its Aavishkaar India Fund VI with commitments totaling INR 10 billion (USD 130 million) to invest mainly in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). In particular, Sushma Kaushik, a partner at Aavishkaar Capital, said that the fund aims to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kinara Capital Raises $50m in Equity from Nuveen, ASN Microkredietfonds to Boost Lending to MSMEs in India
India’s Kinara Capital recently raised INR 3.8 billion (USD 50 million) in equity from the Global Impact Fund of US-based Nuveen, which led the investment round, and ASN Microkredietfonds, which is advised by the Netherlands’ Triple Jump, to boost Kinara’s lending to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in India. According to Kinara Founder and CEO Hardika Shah
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Louis Dreyfus Company Borrowing $100m from ADB to On-lend to Small-scale Farmers to Boost Climate Resilience, COVID-19 Recovery
The Asian Development Bank (ADB), a multilateral institution based in the Philippines, recently agreed to lend USD 100 million to Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), a Netherlands-based firm active in agriculture, food processing and shipping. LDC plans to use the funds to finance “coffee, cotton and rice inventories” for 50,000 smallholder farmers who supply the firm’s operations in India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Thailand and Vietnam. Among the goals of the project are to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ADA to Promote Financial Inclusion in Niger via Improved Product Design, Supervision, Funding Framework
Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA), an NGO based in Luxembourg that supports microfinance institutions (MFIs) in low- and middle-income countries, recently entered into a contract with Luxembourg’s Directorate of Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs with the goal of creating jobs and otherwise reducing
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Banque Misr Leads $85m Investment to Launch Global Ventures’ Nclude Fund for Financial Inclusion via Fintech in Egypt
Global Ventures, a UAE-based venture capital firm that invests primarily in the Middle East and Africa, recently founded Nclude, an investment fund specializing in financial technology (fintech), with the aim of boosting financial inclusion, primarily in Egypt. Part of the purpose of Nclude is to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Impact Asset Management Loans $11m from Dual Return Microfinance Funds to MFIs in East Timor, Ecuador, Kosovo, Nicaragua
Impact Asset Management (I-AM), a member of the Austria-based C-Quadrat Investment Group, recently disbursed loans from Vision Microfinance and Vision Microfinance Local Currency, the two sub-funds of the Dual Return Fund family, that total the equivalent of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: SIG Venture Capital Leads $210m Investment in Fintech Voyager of the Philippines
Voyager Innovations, a Philippine provider of digital financial services tools such as Fintq, PayMaya and Smart Padala, recently secured an investment package totaling USD 210 million. The fresh capital is slated for developing the company’s “digital banking venture and other services like cryptocurrency and micro-investments.” Voyager was established in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Khan Bank Borrows $6m from MicroVest for SMEs in Mongolia
MicroVest, a debt-focused asset manager owned by US-based DAI Global, recently agreed to lend USD 6 million to Khan Bank, which serves individuals and companies of all sizes in Mongolia. The goal of the loan is to boost
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroVest Investing $2.5m in Rentek of Colombia to Help MSMEs Recover from COVID-19 Downturn
MicroVest, a debt-focused asset manager owned by US-based DAI Global, recently agreed to lend USD 2.5 million to Rentek, a Colombian funder of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The goal is to assist Rentek’s clients in recovering from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. Founded in 1997, Rentek provides liquidity to businesses via loans, equipment leasing and invoice factoring. It also operates a
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Pahal Raises Equity, Debt from Huruma Fund, Magallanes Impacto, Northern Arc to Expand Microfinance for Women Farmers in India
Spain-based Gawa Capital recently disbursed EUR 6 million (USD 6.5 million) from the Huruma Fund, a public-private partnership also based in Spain, to purchase a minority stake of undisclosed size in Pahal Financial Services, a microfinance institution based in the city of Ahmedabad, India. Among the goals of the investment are
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bix, FMO Lending $10m to C-Quest Capital to Expand Usage of Clean Cookstoves in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), a Dutch public-private partnership, is lending USD 6.4 million to C-Quest Capital, a US-based investor in projects that reduce the environmental impacts of energy production and usage in low- and middle-income countries. At the same time, Bix Capital, a Dutch provider of debt financing to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to boost
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Spark+Africa Fund Raises $40m in Equity from Public, Private Investors for Clean Cookstove Industry in Sub-Saharan Africa
The Spark+Africa Fund, an investor in cookstoves that create less pollution and use less fuel, recently launched with a total of USD 40 million invested by 12 organizations. Spark+ invests across the value chain for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BNCR Raising $75m from IDB Invest, FinDev Canada via Social Bond Issue Focusing on Women Entrepreneurs in Costa Rica
IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently arranged a social bond issue in the amount of USD 75 million to benefit the Banco Nacional de Costa Rica (BNCR), a government-owned bank. The funding is intended to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Green for Growth Fund Lending MF Banka $5.5m to Promote Renewable Energy, Efficiency Among SMEs in Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Green for Growth Fund (GGF), a public-private partnership registered in Luxembourg, recently partnered with MF Banka a.d. Banja Luka, a bank that primarily serves small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, to expand the bank’s lending for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects. MF Banka is borrowing EUR 5 million (USD 5.5 million) from GGF to fund
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Disburses $15m in Local Currency from IIV to MBK Ventura of Indonesia for Group Microfinance Loans for Women
Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based impact investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed a local-currency loan equivalent to USD 15 million in favor of Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura, a microlender in Indonesia, on behalf Invest in Visions (IIV). Established in 2006, MBK Ventura seeks to raise the living standards of low-income women in rural parts of the island of Java by providing access to group microloans for use as