by Christopher Maggio -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Micro Housing Finance Corporation (MHFC) Recieves Rs 25 cr (USD 5.4 million) in Private Equity From the India Financial Inclusion Fund (IFIF) and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation

Micro Housing Finance Corporation (MHFC), a “housing finance company” based in Mumbai, India that is “focused on the urban lower income group,” has received a commitment for Rs 25 cr, the equivalent of over USD 5.3 million, in private equity from the India Financial Inclusion Fund (IFIF), a fund that specifically invests in companies that provide financial services to low-income clients, and the Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, which aims to reduce urban poverty [1,2,3,4].

by Kenny Kline -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: IFC invests USD 20 million In Bank Respublika Intending to Boost Finance for Azerbaijan’s Businesses

The International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced it will invest USD 20 million in Bank Respublika, Azerbaijan’s fourth-largest private sector bank, to help increase lending to micro, small, and medium businesses in the country’s rural areas. [1]

Bank Respublika aims to more than double its lending to small businesses, and expects half of its loans to be in rural areas of Azerbaijan where there is significant unmet demand for financing.  IFC’s senior loan to the bank will support these goals. [1]

by Christopher Maggio -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: IFC Extends USD 15 Million Loan to Brazil’s Tribanco

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the investment arm of the World Bank, has extended a loan of USD 15 million to Brazil’s Tribanco to support microentrepreneurs [1,2,3]. The loan has a five-year tenor, and comes after a USD 10 million loan in 2004 [1]. Tribanco’s Board President Juscelino Martins points out that ” it provides a longer tenor than is available normally in Brazil, and further diversifies the bank’s funding sources” [1]. The main beneficiaries of Tribanco’s loans will be “small retail outlets that provide basic goods and services to Brazil’s low-income population in small cities and remote rural areas” [1]. In addition to financing, the IFC will provide training to Tribanco’s staff including “financial literacy modules” in the form of “booklets and e-learning”.

by Stefanie Rubin -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: The Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) Provides $4m Grant for Microfinance Technology Projects in Latin America and Caribbean

The Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) has approved a USD 3.95 million grant for a program promoting the use of technologies by microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC). The program, set to begin early next year, will cost a total of USD 10 million. MFIs in the region are invited to submit proposals, whereupon selected MFI proposals with the most “innovation and capacity to achieve measurable results” will receive support to develop and implement a technology strategy [1].

by Stefanie Rubin -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Opportunity International Expands Education Finance Program with $10m for Entrepreneurs to Open Schools in Poor Neighborhoods

Opportunity International, a nonprofit microfinance organization founded in 1971 by Al Whittaker and David Bussau, announced at the Clinton Global Initiative’s Fifth Annual Meeting that it will expand its Banking on Education program to five additional countries over the next 24 months.  Opportunity will commit USD 10 million to its education finance program, which provides loans for entrepreneurs to open schools in poor areas where it is difficult for children, particularly girls, to access public schools [1, 2].  Opportunity reaches over one million clients globally with products including loans, insurance and technical services.  As of December 2008, it had USD 799 million in assets [3].  To view the 2008 Annual Report, see [4] in the bibliography.

by Stefanie Rubin -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Grameen Trust of Bangladesh Partners with Alibaba Group to Create Grameen China, With Initial Focus on Bringing Microfinance to Sichuan Province

Grameen Trust of Bangladesh, an NGO established by Nobel Laureate Professor Muhammad Yunus in 1989, has teamed up with Alibaba Group, China’s largest online business-to-business trading site which hosts over 42 million users from more than 240 countries, to create Grameen China [1, 2, 3].  Alibaba, which had an IPO of USD 1.7 billion on the HKSE in 2007, has kicked-off the initiative with a USD 5 million charitable donation.  Grameen China will initially focus on providing financial services to people living in Inner Mongolia and Sichuan Province, which is still recovering from the May 2008 earthquake that killed over 70,000 people and left nearly 10 million homeless [4].

by Christopher Maggio -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Bandhan Gets Rs 250-cr (USD 51.9) Million Credit Line From The Government-Backed Small Industries Development Bank of India

Bandhan, a seven-year-old microfinance institution (MFI) based in Kolkata, India has received a credit line worth over USD 51.9 million from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi), a government-backed bank focused on investing in the “Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Sector” (MSME) of India [1,2,3]. This comes after Sidbi extended credit worth over USD 20.7 million to Bandhan last fiscal year [3].

by Stefanie Rubin -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Lok Capital Invests US $1.5 M in Asirvad Microfinance Private Ltd of India

Venture fund Lok Capital LLC has closed a US $1.5 million investment deal with Indian Chennai-based Asirvad Microfinance Private Ltd, giving it a 24% stake in the company [1].  Launched in 2001 with support from the Rockefeller Foundation, Maritius-based Lok Capital Group comprises Lok Capital LLC, a venture fund which invests in commercially-oriented microfinance institutions in India; Lok Advisory Services (LAS), an Indian-based team which advices the Fund; and the Lok Foundation, a not-for-profit entity providing grant financing to MFIs that receive investments from Lok Capital LLC [2].  Lok Capital LLC investors include the IFC, CDC Group, KfW, FMO, Accion International, responsAbility and Développement international Desjardins.  The fund has a total of US $22 million in committed capital and an average investment size ranges from US $0.5 million to US $2 million [3].

by Christopher Maggio -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Financiera Independencia (Independencia) Announced Increase in Line of Credit With Government-Backed Sociedad Hipotecaria Federal (SHF) From Ps. 600 Million (USD 45.2 Million) to Ps. 700 Million (USD 52.7 Million)

Financiera Independencia (Independencia), a microfinance bank based in Mexico City, has received an increased credit line from Sociedad Hipotecaria Federal (SHF), a government-backed bank that provides funding and guarantees for financial institutions [1,2,3]. The line of credit has now reached 700 million pesos (USD 52.7 million) from the previous amount of 600 million pesos (USD 45.2 million) [3]. The fund will mature in March 2011, which makes it the earliest maturity of all of Independencia’s funds [3]. Independencia’s Chief Executive Officer Noel Gonzalez has commented that the funding “[has brought the bank] one step closer in achieving [its] goal of diversifying funding sources in the medium term so that no single source represents more than 25% of the company’s debt” [3].

by Diya Chopra -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Peruvian Commercial Bank, Banco de Credito, to Acquire Microfinance Group, Financiera Edyficar from CARE, International Finance Corporation (IFC), and MicroVest (MV)

Banco de Crédito del Perú (BCP) recently announced its deal with nongovernmental organization CARE, to purchase a 77.2% stake in the Peru-based microfinance company, Financiera Edyficar. BCP is a Peruvian publicly-traded commercial bank founded in 1889 and owned by Credicorp Ltd, a financial holding company in Peru. BCP offers services and products to businesses and individuals, as well as small and medium-sized enterprises [1]. In March 2008, BCP reported total assets of USD 17.3 billion, a debt-equity ratio of 1,422.10%, and a return on average assets of 2.13%. It has a BBB- credit rating from both Standard & Poor’s and Fitch Ratings. As of June 2009, BCP claimed 32% of loans and 36% of deposits in the Peruvian banking system. Approximately 97% of BCP is owned by Credicorp [2].

by Christopher Maggio -

MICROCAPITAL.ORG STORY: Grameen-CPAD-Danone Micro-Credit Initiative Aids Post-Quake Reconstruction in Sichuan, China

In March of 2009 Microcapital reported on a project, called the Grameen-CPAD-Danone Micro-Credit Initiative, to bring micro credit to the victims of the Sichuan earthquake that devastated the province in southwest China as well as to impoverished people of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region and the Hebbei Province [1]. The project is a joint operation between Grameen Trust [2], which aims to support microfinance activities around the world, Danone [3], the world’s biggest producer of fresh dairy products, and The Group Office of Poverty Alleviation and Development (CPAD) [4], which implements policies and projects for economic development in poor areas of China. Danone funded the initiative by providing a donation of USD 2.9 million, according to an article in China Daily, while Grameen Trust has provide technical assistance and CPAD has provided policy guidance [4,5]. In addition to these groups, the China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation (CFPA), whose goals is poverty reduction through various means, has been implementing the project on the ground [5,6].