by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Networks in Nigeria, Latin America & Caribbean Boost Trajectory of Women Staff, Clients of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)

European Microfinance PlatformAt a session titled “Professional Women’s Networks and Women’s Leadership in Financial Inclusion,” Mariana Martinez of FinEquity, a platform hosted by CGAP that promotes women’s financial inclusion, described the platform’s new Spanish-language arm, FinEquityALC. FinEquityALC focuses on Latin America and the Caribbean, serving as a pilot project that could lead to FinEquity establishing other regional projects. The goals of FinEquityALC are to improve public policy that impacts women’s financial inclusion as well as financial products and financial education that are targeted at women. Its 1,100 users span 250 institutions.

Barbara Magnoni of Andares and EA Consultants described how Andares connects 

by Divya Deshmukh -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Invest in Africa Summit; Africa Trade and Investment Convention; July 1-2, 2022; Amsterdam, the Netherlands – NEW DATES

The purposes of the Invest in Africa Summit are promoting “investment and trade opportunities in African countries, connecting foreign companies with competent authorities and businesses from Africa, and enabling small and medium-sized enterprises [SMEs] and startups to find alternative financing solutions….” The summit includes

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Private, Public Funders on Green Microfinance, Climate Adaptation, Biodiversity

European Microfinance PlatformToday, at the first plenary of European Microfinance Week 2021, climate adaptation was the hot topic – in contrast to climate mitigation, which is more of a preventative measure. The panelists argued that the scale of funding for climate adaptation is much too small and that many of those most in need still lack access to funding. These groups include smallholder farmers, women, youth and members of indigenous groups. Meanwhile, financial services providers (FSPs) are reporting that

by Zach Deluca -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: HDFC Bank to Lend $100m to Micro-, Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) in India – Half Led by Women – with Support from DFC, Mastercard, USAID

HDFC Bank, an affiliate of India’s Housing Development Finance Corporation, recently agreed to lend USD 100 million to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in India to support their usage of digital payments, including to adjust to the COVID-19 pandemic. Half of the credit facility is

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: European Microfinance Week – Christoph Pausch Discusses the Main Event, November 17-19, Plus 2 Bonus Training Days

European Microfinance PlatformMicroCapital: European Microfinance Week (EMW) 2021 – like in 2020 – will be virtual. How is it possible to make an online conference a success?

Christoph Pausch: Like last year’s successful first virtual conference and in the years before it, EMW2021 remains primarily a member-led event, and the programme is developed based on what members propose and consider important. This is as true as ever. There are things we learned from last year’s event, and there will be some changes based on what we observed – and based on feedback from attendees, of course. But funda­mentally the idea remains the same: a programme covering a wide range of topic streams and presented via a whole array of different session models, chosen depending on the subject matter, the audience and the objectives of the session. That means plenaries, traditional panels, work­shops, topic lounges, publication launches and Action Group meetings – among others. As much as possible, we help our members put together sessions that are current, relevant, important and interactive. Beyond this, there are

by Zach Deluca -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC Announces $150m Loan to Produbanco of Ecuador to Support Women’s Enterprise, SME Lending, Green Projects

Banco de la Producción SA (Produbanco), a bank in Ecuador, recently agreed to borrow USD 150 million from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), a government-backed development finance institution. One half of the funding is for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to support

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: CRECER, Dreamlopments, Fonkoze in Finals for European Microfinance Award 2021 on Inclusive Finance & Health Care

From the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP): On the 22nd and 23rd September 2021, the Selection Committee for the European Microfinance Award 2021 (EMA 2021) on “Inclusive Finance & Health Care” chose the three finalists who will go on to compete for the EUR 100,000 (USD 117,000) prize: CRECER IFD from Bolivia, Dreamlopments Limited from Thailand and Fonkoze from Haiti.

Access to quality health care underpins everything else: it allows education to play its role in opening new opportunities; it allows people to earn, invest and employ others; it lets groups and societies prosper. But paying for health care is the single biggest

by Divya Deshmukh -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: European Microfinance Network (EMN) Annual Conference; October 14-15, 2021; Brussels, Belgium

The 18th European Microfinance Network (EMN) Annual Conference is themed “inclusive finance for an inclusive future.” The agenda includes topics such as the digitization of financial services, creating resilient business models and “microfinance as a pioneer in impact investing.” The second day of the event coincides with

by Divya Deshmukh -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: The SAM (Semaine Africaine de la Microfinance); October 18-22, 2021; Kigali, Rwanda

This year’s SAM (Semaine Africaine de la Microfinance) includes five days of conference sessions, an investors’ fair, an “Innovators’ Village,” research presentations, training sessions and workshops under the theme “Resilience of the African Inclusive Finance Sector.” The two-day conference portion of SAM includes sessions on topics such as how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected efforts to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goals, financing agricultural value chains, risk management, serving youth, digital infrastructure and post-crisis reconstruction. The other days of SAM include workshops on topics such as social performance,

by Arin Atluri -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citi, DFC Announce $15m Local-currency Loan to CAME of Mexico to Boost Financial Inclusion of 40,000 SMEs

Consejo de Asistencia al Microemprendedor (CAME), a Mexican microfinance institution, recently agreed to borrow MXN 300 million (USD 15 million) through a partnership between US-based bank Citi and the government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC). The proceeds of the term loan are to be

by Divya Deshmukh -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Lends $12m to Garanti BBVA Leasing Romania for Microenterprises, SMEs, Including Women-owned Enterprises

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently loaned EUR 10 million (USD 12 million) to Garanti BBVA Leasing Romania, which is controlled by Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA). The investment is intended to support microenterprises as well as

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Raises $207m in Equity for COVID-19 Emerging and Frontier Markets MSME Support Fund – Adding IDB, Visa Foundation as Investors

BlueOrchard Impact Investment Managers, a member of the UK-based Schroders Group, recently announced it raised USD 207 million in the second close of its COVID-19 Emerging and Frontier Markets MSME Support Fund, which is intended to counter “the economic consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic” among micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in low- and middle-income countries. The new investors in the funding round include IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC Boosts 2X Women’s Initiative Goal to $12b; Adds Climate, Technical Assistance Components; Announces Women’s World Banking (WWB) Fund Partnership

The government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently announced a set of initiatives to boost its promotion of gender equity, including: (1) an increased goal of investing USD 12 billion in women over five years through its 2X Women’s Initiative, which supports “investment in projects that are owned by women, led by women, or provide a product or service that empowers women;” (2)

by Sophie Fiala -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Evidence Review on the Role of Male Engagement in Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE) Programs,” by Emily Aleson et al, Published by Grameen Foundation

This paper analyzes four studies of the impact of male engagement on women’s financial literacy, financial independence, health, education, economic empowerment and maternal practices. Women are subjected disproportionately to

by Teo Lin-Bianco -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Impact Investing World Forum; September 23-24, 2021; London, UK, with Virtual Option

The Impact Investing World Forum (IIWF) is focused on investments that are in line with concerns such as environmental, social and governance (ESG) criteria and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The event will feature speakers from

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC to Invest $40m in Housing, Microfinance, SME Lending, Agriculture in Guatemala

The government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently agreed to invest USD 40 million in Guatemala in the following segments: (1) a loan of USD 19.5 million to Guatemala-based real estate company Destino Desarrollos to aid in the construction of “approximately 2,000 homes and associated infrastructure” deemed “affordable” in the cities of Coban, Fraijanes and Quetzaltenango; (2) with support from the US Agency for International Development (AID), a loan guarantee of USD 15 million to Guatemala-based bank Interbanco, to cover the local-currency equivalent of USD

by Tejas Gumudavelly -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC Agrees to Loan $100m to WaterEquity Global Access Fund to Boost Access to Clean Drinking Water, Sanitation

The government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently agreed to loan USD 100 million to the WaterEquity Global Access Fund and disbursed the first tranche of USD 25 million. US-based investment manager WaterEquity launched the Global Access Fund with the goal of raising USD 150 million to “empower at least 5 million people to access improved water and sanitation across Asia, Latin America and Africa.” The terms of the loan from DFC

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Invests $24m in Evolving Europe Principal Investments Fund (EEPIF) to Boost SME Finance

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently invested EUR 20 million (USD 24.2 million) in the Evolving Europe Principal Investments Fund (EEPIF), which is managed by UK-based private equity firm Integral Venture Partners, with the goal of improving the financial inclusion of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in 14 countries. Among the countries to receive investment are