Microfinanciera Fundeser, a microfinance institution serving rural Nicaragua, recently agreed to borrow USD 1 million from Aequitas, a fund launched by Desjardins International Development (DID), a unit of the Canadian cooperative Desjardins Group. This is the first loan disbursed by Aequitas, which was launched in 2021 with an investment of CAD 50 million (USD 37 million) from the Desjardins Group. The goal of the fund, which is managed by DID’s FONIDI Management, is to support financial inclusion by investing in small financial services providers with the aim of reaching UN Sustainable Development Goals such as eliminating gender inequality and addressing climate change.
Fundeser was founded in 2000 and has since grown to operate 18 branches, serving 13,000 people, about half of whom are women. Its offerings include airtime purchases, payments, vehicle insurance and lending. It offers loans designed for purposes such as farming, housing upgrades, consumer purchases, microenterprise, and small and medium-sized business. The institution has a loan portfolio of USD 38 million.
Founded in 1970, DID is a Canadian nonprofit that seeks “to promote the economic empowerment of disadvantaged communities around the world by facilitating access to secure, diversified financial services.” It specializes in providing technical support and investment for the inclusive finance sector. The NGO is active in 30 nations across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Desjardins Group serves 7.5 million people with services such as retail banking, wealth management, securities brokerage, venture capital and asset management.
Sources and Additional Resources
Direct contact with DID
Press release
https://www.desjardins.com/qc/en/news/our-investment-fundeser.html
Fundeser homepage
https://fundeser.com.ni
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