Unitus Capital (UC), a Bangalore-based financial services firm that specializes in capital market services for microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other social enterprises in Asia, recently announced that Gray Matters Capital (GMC), a US-based private foundation, invested an undisclosed amount in UC to fund social businesses that both assist poor clients and generate financial returns.
Search Results for: india
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Uganda Government Proposes 10% Tax on Mobile Money Transaction Fees
The Ugandan federal government recently announced in its 2013/14 budget a proposed ten-percent tax on all mobile money transactions in the country.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Myanmar Licences First Private Insurers
The Myanmar government reportedly has granted operating licenses to five insurance companies in line with its financial reform policy. International Kanbawza Insurance, a subsidiary of Kanbawza Bank (KBZ) is the first insurance company to have started operation in the city of Yangon, providing both standard insurance and microinsurance[1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Caterpillar Foundation Donates $19m to Opportunity International to Reach 17m People in Africa, Asia and Latin America
Opportunity International, a US-based nonprofit organization that provides financial services to poor people in 24 countries, recently announced that Caterpillar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of US-based equipment manufacturer Caterpillar Inc., has granted Opportunity two multi-year donations totaling USD 19.2 million [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives, Habitat for Humanity Thailand, Citi Foundation Launch “Microsavings Program for Home Improvement”
Executive Vice President Somsak Kangteerawat of the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives (BAAC), a government-owned bank in Thailand that extends credit to farmers, and Board Chairman Piriyah Wisedjinda of Habitat for Humanity (HFH) Thailand, a branch of the US-based NGO HFH International, have signed a memorandum of understanding establishing the “Microsavings Program for Home Improvement”, which is intended to support home improvements for low-income families living in areas of Thailand that are prone to flooding.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Gemalto Provides Biometric Smart Cards for “Prime Cash” Branchless Banking in Bangladesh
Gemalto, a digital security company based in the Netherlands, has developed a smart card-based system for two Bangladeshi businesses: Prime Bank Limited, a commercial bank founded in 1995, and Dipon Consultancy Services Limited (DCSL), a member of the Bangladesh-based conglomerate Dipon Group. The system will support the branchless banking service known as Prime Cash, which was established by the two firms in 2012.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Vodacom Mozambique Launches M-Pesa Mobile Money Service
Vodacom, a South Africa-based mobile communications company owned by UK-based Vodafone, reportedly has announced the expansion its mobile pesa (M-Pesa) cash transfer service to Mozambique.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: UT Bank Ghana Receives $20m Credit Line from African Development Bank to Support Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises
The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB), a multilateral institution that provides loans and grants to governments and private companies in Africa, recently approved a 3.5-year line of credit in the amount of USD 20 million to UT Bank Ghana Limited (UT Bank), a commercial bank based in Ghana with 26 branches in Ghana and an unavailable number of subsidiary branches in West Africa and Europe.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Magenta Global to Host 4th Mobile Payments & Banking Summit for Greater Mekong & Emerging Markets, June 12-13, 2013, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Event Name: 4th Mobile Payments & Banking Summit for Greater Mekong & Emerging Markets
Event Date: June 12-13, 2013
Event Location: NagaWorld Hotel, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Star Microinsurance Company of Ghana Pays Insurance Claims to Kantamanto Fire Victims through MicroEnsure, Advans Ghana
Ghana-based Star Microinsurance Company Limited reportedly has paid some of the victims of the Kantamanto and Agbogbloshie markets fire outbreak in the Ghanian city of Accra a total insurance claim of GHS 115,000 (USD 57,629) through its partners MicroEnsure Ghana, an insurance intermediary and subsidiary of US-based nonprofit Opportunity International, and Advans Ghana Savings and Loans, a non-bank financial institution that focuses on micro enterprise.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Ecobank’s Sierra Leone Arm Refutes Newspaper Report of Money Laundering
The Sierra Leonean arm of Ecobank Microfinance, a microfinance institution (MFI) based in the African country of Togo, reportedly has issued a statement refuting recent allegations of money laundering.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFTransparency Reveals Truth in Lending Tables Data Platform and Pricing Transparency Index
MicroFinance Transparency (MFTransparency), a US-based nongovernmental organization that provides information on microcredit products and their prices, recently revealed the Truth in Lending Tables (TILT) Data Platform that displays the interest rates and fees charged to 40 million microfinance clients of 429 institutions across 20 countries.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Trico Charitable Foundation to Host 2013 Social Enterprise World Forum, October 2-4, 2013, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Event Name: 2013 Social Enterprise World Forum (SEWF)
Event Date: October 2-4, 2013
Event Location: Telus Convention Centre, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) to Offer Validated Social Data from Microfinance Institutions
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), a US-based nonprofit, recently announced plans to release a feature on its MIX Market website in 2013 that will allow users to search for “validated social data” from microfinance institutions (MFIs) and filter out those not reporting such data.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: G20’s Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion Publishes Data on 192 Countries
The Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI), which is mandated to carry out the financial inclusion action plan endorsed at the 2010 summit of the Group of 20 (G20) large economies, has released a set of “basic” financial inclusion indicators populated with data from 192 countries.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Microcredit Summit Campaign, Microfinance Council of the Philippines to Host 2013 Partnerships Against Poverty Summit, October 9-11, 2013, Manila, Philippines
Event Name: 2013 Partnerships Against Poverty Summit
Event Date: October 9-11, 2013
Event Location: Philippine International Convention Center, Manila, Philippines
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: LeapFrog, Kinnevik Invest $7m in Mobile Microinsurance Provider Bima
LeapFrog Investments, a Mauritius-based investor in insurance providers operating in emerging markets, recently announced plans to invest USD 4.3 million to take a stake of undisclosed size in Bima, a Sweden-based mobile microinsurance provider that operates in emerging markets in Africa and Asia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: US-Based Sequoia Capital Invests $2m in Equity in Electronic Payment Platform, Citrus Pay
Citrus Pay, a Mumbai-based digital payments service provider, and Ezetap Mobile Solutions, a Bangalore-based mobile payments service provider, have developed electronic payment platforms that address internet security and connectivity challenges, both of which have discouraged Indian consumers from using digital payment methods.