by Jennifer Young -

MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Small Business Banking Network Hosts Conference on Financing Women Entrepreneurs in Africa, February 18-19, 2013, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

Event Name: Advancing Women Entrepreneurs: Financing Women-Led Businesses

Event Date: February 18-19, 2013

Event Location: Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

by Chioma Okwudiafor -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Blassys Publishing Accounting and Microfinance Conference, December 21, 2012, Asheville, North Carolina, USA

Event Name: Blassys Publishing Accounting and Microfinance Conference 2012

Event Date: December 21, 2012

Event Location: Grove Park Inn, 290 Macon Avenue, Asheville, North Carolina, USA

by Chioma Okwudiafor -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Cracking the Nut: Sustainable Sourcing for Agricultural Supply Chains Conference, June 25 – June 26, 2013, Dresden, Germany

Event Name: Cracking the Nut Conference 2013

Event Date: June 25 – June 26, 2013

Event Location: Dresden, Germany

by Chioma Okwudiafor -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bank for International Settlements Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion Conference Emphasizes Minimizing Regulation For Smaller Transactions

The Financial Stability Institute of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), an international financial institution based in Basel, Switzerland, which aids central banks in their pursuit of monetary and financial stability, recently hosted its first Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) Conference with the theme “Promoting financial inclusion through proportionate standards and guidance.”

by Sarah Benali -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Juntos Finanzas of California Wins $100k Mexico Financial Inclusion Competition

Juntos Finanzas, a US-based company offering mobile personal finance tools, recently was announced the winner of the 2012 Financial Inclusion Competition created at G2012 Mexico, the seventh summit of leaders from 20 large economies (G-20), and Ashoka Changemakers, an initiative of the US-based nonprofit Ashoka.

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Panel: Seeking Diversification, Microfinance Investors Often Reap Annual Returns of 4%

On Friday, November 16 at European Microfinance Week, a conference hosted by the Luxembourg-based European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP), Sebastian von Stauffenberg, the CEO of US-based microfinance rating agency MicroRate, said of the larger investment community, “People outside of our microfinance bubble speak another language – if we don’t speak their language, the whole trickle-down effect [of increased investment in microfinance] does not occur.” Mr von Stauffenberg was speaking as part of a panel on microfinance investment that also included Sebastien Juhen of Swiss microfinance investor BlueOrchard Finance, who said that microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs) should work to improve their communication to investors regarding the risks of investing in microfinance including how investment managers address these risks.

by Sarah Benali -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Making Finance Work for Africa (MFW4A), Munich Re Foundation Survey: African Microinsurance Tripled in 3 Years

A recent study being released this week by Making Finance Work For Africa (MFW4A), an initiative that aims to coordinate financial sector development among African governments, and Munich Re Foundation, the charitable arm of the German reinsurance company, indicates the microinsurance market in Africa has grown by 200 percent in the past 3 years.

by Mihaela Grindeanu -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Yavuz Sariyildiz Wins CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) Photography Contest

CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), a US-based nonprofit, recently announced that Yavuz Sariyildiz of Turkey has won 2012 Photography Contest, which comes with a USD 2,000 gift certificate for photography equipment and accessories.

by Chioma Okwudiafor -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Institute for International Research Holds Third Annual Microinsurance Conference, Johannesburg, South Africa, January 22 – January 24, 2013

Event Name: 3rd Annual Microinsurance Conference

Event Date: January 22 – January 24, 2013

Event Location: The Wanderers Club, Ilovo, Johannesburg, South Africa

by Mihaela Grindeanu -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Baker & McKenzie Hosts Discussion on Impact of Microfinance, New York, USA, October 30, 2012

Event Name: Microfinance: Measuring and Maximizing Impact

Event Date: October 30, 2012

Event Location: Baker & McKenzie LLP, 1114 Avenue of the Americas, 4th Floor, New York, USA

by Chioma Okwudiafor -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Opal Financial Group Offers “Clean and Green Energy Forum: Investing For a Renewable Future”, Dana Point, California, USA, December 3 – December 4, 2012

Event Name: Clean and Green Energy Forum: Investing for a Renewable Future

Event Date: December 3 – December 4, 2012

Event Location: The Ritz Carlton, Laguna Niguel, Dana Point, California, USA.