responsAbility Social Investments AG, an investment company based in Switzerland, has recently reported to MicroCapital that it has made loans totaling the equivalent of USD 2.9 million to microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia, Tajikistan and the Philippines.
Category: Eastern Europe and Central Asia
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Center (MFC) for Central and Eastern Europe and the New Independent States Announces Launch of Social Performance Start-Up Fund
The Microfinance Center (MFC) for Central and Eastern Europe and the New Independent States, an international network of approximately 110 microfinance institutions (MFIs), recently announced the launch of its Social Performance Start-up Fund, a facility that aims to provide technical and financial assistance to regional- and country- level microfinance networks that are looking to address social performance.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Belgian Incofin Loans $1.5m to TenGer Financial Group of Mongolia
Incofin cvso, a Belgian cooperative company that invests in microfinance, recently loaned MNT 41 million (USD 1.5 million) to Tenger Financial Group, a Mongolian Company that controls XacBank LLC, XacLeasing LLC, Horus Nomadic Solutions LLC and TenGer Insurance LLC. Founded in 2001, the group was formed following the merger of Goviin Ehlel (renamed XAC-GE Holding) and X.A.C. (renamed XacBank), two non-bank financial institutions that focus on micro-, small and medium enterprises.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Social Investments Makes Loans Totaling $12.5m to Belarusian Bank for Small Business (BBSB) of Belarus, Khan Bank of Mongolia, XacBank of Mongolia
responsAbility Social Investments AG, an investment company based in Switzerland, recently invested USD 12.5 million across three financial institutions based in Belarus and Mongolia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) to Provide Connectivity and Surveillance Products to National Rural Support Program (NRSP) Microfinance Bank
Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL), an internet and telephone service provider based in Islamabad, recently reached an agreement with the licensed banking arm of Pakistani microfinance institution (MFI) National Rural Support Program (NRSP), NRSP Microfinance Bank, to provide the central and branch offices of the bank with internet connections and bank surveillance.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Social Investments of Switzerland Makes Loans Totaling $10m to FINCA International Subsidiaries in Azerbaijan, Russia, Ecuador and Mexico
responsAbility Social Investments AG, an investment company based in Switzerland, recently reported to MicroCapital that it has invested loans approximately equivalent to USD 10.2 million to FINCA International subsidiaries in Azerbaijan, Russia, Ecuador and Mexico. FINCA International is a global microfinance network operating in 21 countries reporting total assets of USD 467 million as of 2009 [2].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $9m to IMPULS-Leasing Romania (ILRO), Supports Leasing to Rural Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a development finance institution that is headquartered in London, recently announced that it loaned EUR 7 million (USD 9.7 million) to IMPULS-Leasing Romania IFN SA (ILRO), a Romanian vehicle and equipment leasing company, to extend leasing services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in rural areas.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citi Foundation, Russian Microfinance Center to Train MFIs to Train their Borrowers in Entrepreneurship
Citi Foundation, the charitable arm of global financial services provider Citigroup, has partnered with the Russian Microfinance Center (RMC), a professional association that supports microfinance operators in Russia, to facilitate business development for start-up entrepreneurs in Russia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $3m to Microfinance Provider Kompanion Financial Group of Kyrgyzstan
In an effort to support local-currency lending to micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) in remote areas of Kyrgyzstan, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a development finance institution headquartered in London, has made a loan of approximately KGS 142 million (USD 3 million) to Kompanion Financial Group, a microfinance company specializing in community development in Kyrgyzstan. Established in 2004 by US-based nonprofit Mercy Corps, Kompanion Financial Group maintains a network of 90 branches across the seven regions of Kyrgyzstan with approximately 90 percent of the company’s clientele located outside of the country’s capital, Bishkek.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe Loans $10m to Megabank of Ukraine with Focus on Microfinance
The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a microfinance investment fund incorporated in Luxembourg in 2005, recently reported to MicroCapital that it made a debt investment of USD 10 million in Megabank of Ukraine, a commercial bank serving both corporate and individual clients.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $3m to Mol Bulak Finance of the Kyrgyz Republic for On-Lending to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a development finance institution headquartered in London, has agreed to provide a loan of approximately KGS 142 million (USD 3 million) to Mol Bulak Finance, a non-bank microfinance institution, to support small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in the Kyrgyz Republic.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citi Foundation, Pakistan Microfinance Network Launch Flood Relief Efforts for Microfinance Industry in Pakistan
The Citi Foundation, the charitable arm of global financial services provider Citigroup, has partnered with the Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN), an association of 20 microfinance providers in Pakistan, to aid the microfinance industry in recovering from the impacts of the Pakistani floods of 2010.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Number of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Nation of Georgia Grows to 47 in 2010
The number of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the nation of Georgia grew from 38 to 47 in 2010, an increase of 24 percent, according to the National Bank of Georgia (NBG). Microfinance is popular in Georgia reportedly because small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) struggle to meet the cash flow requirements imposed by commercial banks. Despite this, risk in the sector is reportedly low: the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) Georgia, an arm of the US-based MFI network FINCA International, reports a current delinquent loan rate of 0.3 percent.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: AccessBank of Azerbaijan Reports Deposit Portfolio Increase of 86 Percent During 2010
AccessBank, a commercial bank that offers financial services to micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) in Azerbaijan, recently reported that its deposit portfolio increased by 86 percent during 2010 to the equivalent of USD 150 million.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Turkish Grameen Microcredit Program (TGMP) Reaches $47m In Total Loans to Entrepreneurs In Turkey Since 2003
The Turkish Grameen Microcredit Program (TGMP), a microcredit project of the US-based Grameen Foundation, announced that it has disbursed approximately TRY 73 million (USD 46.9 million) in unsecured loans to approximately 42,000 women since its founding in 2003.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $90m to Patria Credit of Romania and Orient Express of Russia for Microfinance and Small Business Lending
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a development finance institution headquartered in London, made two loans worth USD 90 million to support microfinance in Romania and the Russian Far East.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ShoreCap Renamed CapitalPlus Exchange, Launches Small Business Banking Network
ShoreCap Exchange, which was founded by ShoreBank Corporation in 2003 in Chicago, recently changed its name to CapitalPlus Exchange Corporation (Exchange) with plans to maintain its mission as a nonprofit organization that specializes in technical assistance and capacity building for financial institutions in Africa, Asia and Eastern Europe.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $10.5m to Bank Respublika to Support Micro-, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Azerbaijan
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently made loans totaling USD 10.5 million to Bank Respublika in Azerbaijan. Since the beginning of its operations in Azerbaijan, “EBRD has invested some EUR 1.2 billion (USD 1.57 billion) in about 120 projects, with over 60 percent of the projects being investments into the development of the private sector.”