The China Social Entrepreneurship Foundation, a Chinese nonprofit microfinance institution also known as the YouCheng or YouChange Foundation; the Washington-based nonprofit Grameen Foundation; and several Chinese businesses recently agreed to collaboratively found a new microfinance institution in China, the Beijing YouChange PuRong Information Advisory Company Limited (YouChange PuRong). The Grameen Foundation and the YouChange Foundation will work with private sector firms Jilifu Investment Consulting (Shanghai) Company Limited, Beijing Orienland Mortgage Company Limited and Fosun Venture Capital Investment Company Limited to improve access to microfinance in China. The agreement was announced at the recent Social Innovation Forum, an event hosted by the YouChange Foundation in Beijing. According to the Grameen Foundation, YouChange PuRong “will serve as a platform for empowering tens of millions of poor people in rural China to transform their own lives through access to financial services, especially very small loans” [1]. Further details about YouChange PuRong’s services are not available.
By Lindsey Shaughnessy, Research Associate
About the Grameen Foundation: The Grameen Foundation, founded in 1997, is a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. According to the organization, it aims to help microfinance institutions (MFIs) throughout the world replicate the microfinance model of the Grameen Bank. It provides financial, technological and managerial support for local organizations and intends to provide new business opportunities and telecommunication services to the rural poor. The Grameen Foundation works with MFIs in about 37 countries worldwide. Though the Grameen Foundation is independent of the Grameen Bank, Muhammad Yunus, the founder of the Grameen Bank, serves on the foundation’s Board of Directors. As of March 31, 2010, Grameen Foundation reported total assets of USD 33.1 million.
About the China Social Entrepreneurship Foundation (YouChange Foundation): The China Social Entrepreneurship Foundation, established in 2007 and also known as the YouChange (YouCheng) Foundation, is a Chinese nonprofit organization that aims to provide entrepreneurial and philanthropic organizations and individuals with strategic support, networking and social platforms.
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] Grameen Foundation, “Grameen Foundation and YouChange Foundation Announce New Collaboration to Expand Microfinance Services in China”, September 22, 2010. http://www.grameenfoundation.org/press-releases/grameen-foundation-and-youchange-foundation-announce-new-collaboration-expand-microfi
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Grameen Foundation
MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: China Social Entrepreneurship Foundation (YouChange Foundation)
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