The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a United Nations (UN) organization that engages in “sustainable management”[1] of natural resources and works toward the eradication of hunger, and MasterCard, a US-based payments and technology company, recently formed a partnership to create “inclusive payment systems”[2] to support small-scale farmers and low-income households in developing countries.
Category: Deals
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Deutsche Bank Raises $100m for Microfinance Investment Vehicle European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE)
Deutsche Bank, a Germany-based financial services company, recently announced that it had raised USD 100 million from unspecified private investors for the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a Luxembourg-based microfinance investment vehicle (MIV).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Thailand’s JMT Network Services Establishes JP Finance Co Ltd to Offer Microfinance in Myanmar
JMT Network Services Public Company Limited, a debt collector and loan provider in Thailand under Jay Mart Public Company Limited, recently announced that the organization and unnamed partners aim to establish a joint venture, JP Finance Co Ltd.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Asian Development Bank (ADB) to Finance a Loan Program of $400m to Promote Financial Inclusion in Indonesia
The Asian Development Bank (ADB), a Philippines-based multilateral development finance institution, has committed to loaning USD 400 million toward its Financial Market Development and Inclusion Program (FMDIP) for Indonesia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN) of India Advises Members to Reduce Interest Rates
The Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), a trade organization composed of 47 Indian microlenders, has advised its members to reduce their interest rates voluntarily by “at least 25 basis points” [1] by the end of September 2015.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Starbucks to Commit Additional $30m to Global Farmer Fund Program; Fairtrade Access Fund, Root Capital to Assist with Loans to Coffee Farmers
Starbucks Coffee Company, a US-based coffee retailer, recently announced that it would commit an additional USD 30 million to its Global Farmer Fund program, one of the organization’s “ethical sourcing initiatives”[1] that aims to ensure the sustainability of the organization’s production chain up to 2020.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) May Loan $70m to NBK-Egypt for On-lending to Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Egypt
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral investment institution headquartered in London, England, is considering extending a credit line of USD 70 million to the National Bank of Kuwait-Egypt (NBK-Egypt), a commercial bank based in Cairo, Egypt.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Partners With Government of Belarus on Business Environment for Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group that aims to increase economic growth in developing countries, recently announced that it will partner with the Ministry of the Economy of Belarus “to improve the business environment through measures that will support the growth of small, medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)”[1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indian Microfinance Institution (MFI) Janalakshmi Raises $23.5m through Non-Convertible Debentures, Borrows $4.2m from IFMR Capital
Janalakshmi Financial Services, a Bangalore-based microfinance institution (MFI) that offers lending and insurance services to low-income households in India, recently announced that it had raised a total of INR 1.77 billion (approximately USD 27.7 million) through the issuance of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) and an unsecured term loan.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: India’s Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank Loans $9.3m to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) Arohan, Belstar, Equitas, Margdarshak, Sonata
The Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank, an Indian public-sector financial institution that provides subsidized loans to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and non-banking financial institutions, recently announced that it had disbursed loans totalling INR 620 million (approximately USD 9.3 million) to MFIs in India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: India’s Ujjivan Financial Services Raises $7.85m from Mutual Funds for On-Lending To Micro-, Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises (MSMEs)
Ujjivan Financial Services Private Limited, a microfinance institution (MFI) based in Bangalore, India, recently announced that it has raised INR 500 million (approximately USD 7.85 million) from United Trust of India (UTI), a mutual fund company based in Mumbai, India, through the issuance of secured, non-convertible debentures (NCDs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Thailand’s Kiatnakin Bank, Siam Commercial Bank; India’s Tamilnad Mercantile Bank; ING Bank of the Netherlands Participate in $65m Syndicated Loan to Microfinance Institution (MFI) Prasac to Encourage Growth of Micro-, Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in Rural Cambodia
Commercial banks including Thailand’s Kiatnakin Bank and Siam Commercial Bank (SCB); India’s Tamilnad Mercantile Bank (TMB); and the Netherlands’ ING Bank, recently announced the disbursement of a syndicated loan of USD 65 million to Cambodian microfinance institution (MFI) Prasac Microfinance Limited.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation Lends $170k in Local Currency to Togo’s COOPEC SIFA
The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a Luxembourg-based provider of financial services to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other social businesses, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed the initial tranche of a loan equivalent to approximately USD 170,000 in local currency to Coopérative d’Epargne et de Crédit des Soutien aux Initiatives de Femmes pour l’Autopromotion (COOPEC SIFA), an MFI in Togo that focuses on serving poor women.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: India’s Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank Loans $5.5m to Microfinance Institution (MFI) Satin Creditcare
The Micro Units Development and Refinance Agency (MUDRA) Bank, an Indian public-sector financial institution that provides subsidized loans to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and non-banking financial institutions, recently announced that it has disbursed a loan of INR 350 million (approximately USD 5.5 million) to Satin Creditcare Network Limited, a for profit MFI based in Delhi, India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sanad, Attijari Leasing Partner to Increase Financing for Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Tunisia
The Sanad Fund for MSME, a Luxembourg-based public-private partnership that provides medium- and long-term debt and equity financing in the Middle East and North Africa, and Attijari Leasing, a Tunisia-based subsidiary of Attijari Bank that provides leasing services, signed a senior loan agreement for USD 5 million to support micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Tunisia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $10m to Cambodia’s Microfinance Institution (MFI) Hattha Kaksekar for On-lending to Small, Medium-sized Rural Enterprise
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group, recently announced that it will disburse a loan of USD 10 million to Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL), a microfinance institution (MFI) in Cambodia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tanzania’s FINCA Microfinance Bank, Bharti Airtel to Provide Mobile Banking Services
FINCA Microfinance Bank (formerly FINCA Tanzania), an affiliate of nonprofit microfinance network FINCA International, has announced a partnership with Bharti Airtel, an Indian telecommunications company, aiming to provide mobile banking microfinance services to FINCA’s clients in Tanzania.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: C-Quadrat Asset Management’s Vision Microfinance Funds Issue $5.5m in Credits to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, India, Mongolia, Nicaragua
During July 2015, Austrian asset manager C-Quadrat Asset Management issued loans worth USD 6 million via its two Vision Microfinance funds to unspecified microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Bolivia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, India, Mongolia and Nicaragua.