responsAbility Social Investments AG, a Swiss investment company that operates four microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs), recently reported to MicroCapital that it has made debt investments totaling USD 24 million in microfinance institutions (MFIs) Inecobank, Agricultural Cooperative Bank of Armenia (ACBA) and ACBA leasing of Armenia; DemirBank of Azerbaijan; and Sekerbank of Turkey. The investments have been made through three MIVs: responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund (rAGMF), responsAbility Microfinance Leaders Fund (rAMLF) and responsAbility Mikrofinanz-Fonds.
In Turkey, Mikrofinanz-Fonds and rAMLF made a combined debt investment of USD 10 million in Sekerbank, a private commercial bank that lends to micro- and small enterprise. The bank has total assets of USD 6 billion and a capital adequacy ratio of 16.08 percent according to its 2009 annual report.
In Armenia, rAGMF and rAMLF made a combined debt investment of USD 2.5 million in Inecobank, a microfinance bank. As of 2009, Inecobank reported to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) total assets of USD 129 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 72.5 million, approximately 40,700 borrowers, return on assets (ROA) of 2.97 percent and return on equity (ROE) of 13.76 percent. The two MIVs also invested USD 5.5 million in ACBA, a regulated bank that lends to small and medium-sized enterprises. As of 2009, ACBA reported to the US-based nonprofit (MIX) total assets of USD 425 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 223 million, approximately 96,100 borrowers, ROA of 2.83 percent and ROE of 13 percent. ACBA also received an investment of USD 1.5 million from Mikrofinanz-Fonds. rAGMF made a debt investment of USD 2 million in ACBA Leasing, a subsidiary of ACBA. ACBA Leasing does not report to the US-based nonprofit (MIX), and financial data on the subsidiary is not otherwise available.
In Azerbaijan, rAGMF made a debt investment of USD 2.5 million in DemirBank, a commercial bank that lends to small and medium-sized enterprises. As of 2009, DemirBank reported to the US-based nonprofit (MIX) total assets of USD 321 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 259 million and approximately 37,900 borrowers.
By Nisha Koul, Research Associate
About responsAbility Social Investments AG: Founded in 2003, responsAbility Social Investments AG is a Swiss investment company whose products aim to enable investors to earn a financial return while assisting people in emerging markets to access information and markets in sectors such as microfinance, small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) financing, fair trade and independent media. According to calculations based on data from the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) from 2009 and 2010, responsAbility manages approximately USD 800 million in total assets. responsAbility is backed by Swiss financial institutions and a social venture capital company as founders and shareholders including Baumann & Cie, Banquiers, Credit Suisse, Raiffeisen Schweiz, Swiss Re, Bank Vontobel AG as well as George Avenue.
About responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund (rAGMF): rAGMF is a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) managed by responsAbility that invests in microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other MIVs, mostly through short- to medium-term debt securities. rAGMF also invests up to 10 percent of its assets in the equity of MFIs. In March 2011, its annual label was renewed by the Luxembourg Fund Labeling Agency (LuxFLAG), an organization that investigates whether investment vehicles actually support the microfinance sector. rAGMF reported to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) that it had USD 474 million in fund assets as of 2010.
About responsAbility Microfinance Leaders Fund (rAMLF): The responsAbility Microfinance Leaders Fund (rAMLF) invests in large microfinance institutions (MFIs) through debt securities and equity investments. rAMLF reported to the US-based, nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) that it had USD 160 million in fund assets as of 2010. LuxFLAG, an independent organization that certifies that microfinance vehicles actually invest in the microfinance sector, renewed rAMLF’s label in March 2011.
About responsAbility Mikrofinanz-Fonds: Mikrofinanz-Fonds is a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) that was launched in 2007, is managed by responsAbility Social Investments AG of Switzerland and funded by German Bank im Bistum Essen and Stadtsparkasse Dusseldorf. It invests in short- to medium-term income-bearing debt securities of microfinance institutions (MFIs). Mikrofinanz-Fonds reports to the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), the US-based nonprofit data provider, that it held USD 103 million in assets as of 2010. In April 2011, its annual label was renewed by the Luxembourg Fund Labeling Agency (LuxFLAG), an organization that investigates whether investment vehicles actually support the microfinance sector.
About Inecobank: Inecobank is a microfinance bank based in Armenia that was registered in 1996 with the Central Bank of Armenia and serves small and medium-sized enterprises. The International Finance Corporation (IFC) holds a 10 percent stake in Inecobank. As of 2009, Inecobank reported to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) total assets of USD 129 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 72.5 million, approximately 40,700 borrowers, return on assets (ROA) of 2.97 percent and return on equity (ROE) of 13.76 percent.
About Agricultural Cooperative Bank of Armenia (ACBA): Established in 1995, ACBA is a regulated bank in Armenia. ACBA was founded by the Agricultural Cooperative Regional Unions of the Armenian provinces of Shirak, Armavir and Ararat and obtained a full banking license on March 29, 1996. ACBA was initially created to finance small and medium-sized agricultural enterprises and individual farmers. In the next few years the bank began to finance non-agricultural programs. In 2006, Credit Agricole SA France, made an investment in ACBA and the bank was reorganized into ACBA-Credit Agricole Bank CJSC. As of 2009, ACBA reported to the US-based Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) total assets of USD 425 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 223 million, approximately 96,100 borrowers, return on assets of (ROA) of 2.83 percent and return on equity (ROE) of 13 percent.
About ACBA Leasing: Established in 2003, ACBA Leasing is the leasing subsidiary of Agricultural Cooperative Bank of Armenia (ACBA), a regulated bank in Armenia. ACBA Leasing finances the acquisition of machinery and fixed assets such as equipment for engineering, agriculture, medical procedures, transportation and service businesses. Leasing contracts can last up to 60 months with annual interest rates ranging from 12 percent to 18 percent. ACBA Leasing does not report financial information to the US-based Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX).
About DemirBank: DemirBank, a commercial bank in Azerbaijan, was established as Azjeldorbank in 1989 under license of the USSR State Bank. In 2005, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) became one of the shareholders of DemirBank, and as of 2010 EBRD holds 25 percent of the stock of the bank. As of 2009, DemirBank reported to the US-based Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) total assets of USD 321 million, a gross loan portfolio of USD 259 million, approximately 37,900 borrowers.
About Sekerbank: Sekerbank, founded in 1953, has total assets of USD 6 billion and a capital adequacy ratio of 16.08 percent according to its 2009 annual report. It made an initial public offering in 1997, and current shareholders include Sekerbank Pension Fund and Turan Alem Securities JSC, which each hold 33.98 percent of the institution. Sekerbank provides banking products and services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It has a network of 256 branches, 10 district offices and 1 foreign representative office in Cologne, Germany.
Sources and Additional Resources:
[1] Data submitted by responsAbility Social Investments AG to MicroCapital, July 2011
MICROCAPITAL STORY, November 2007, “The IFC Agrees to Lend Sekerbank in Turkey $52m to Expand its Microfinance Activities”, https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-story-the-ifc-agrees-to-lend-se…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Inecobank, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Ine…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Agricultural Cooperative Bank of Armenia (ACBA), https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=ACB…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: ACBA Leasing, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=ACB…
MicroCapital Universe Profile: Sekerbank, https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Sekerbank
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