The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has recently released its first set of “Country Briefings” which provide information on microfinance institution (MFI) performance, funding structure and supply and demand.
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MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Upcoming Initial Public Offering (IPO) of SKS Microfinance Rated as Grade 4/5 By Credit Analysis and Research Limited (CARE Ratings)
Credit Analysis and Research Limited (CARE Ratings), a rating company based in Mumbai, India, has rated the upcoming initial public offering (IPO) of SKS Microfinance, a microfinance institution (MFI) that caters to women in India, as Grade 4/5, which indicates ‘above average fundamentals.’ The grading system takes into account the company’s financial position including asset quality, capital adequacy ratio, liquidity position and access to diverse sources of institutional funding; recent industry growth; prospects for future growth; and good corporate governance practices. As reported by MicroCapital, SKS Microfinance announced its intentions to sell shares as part of a USD 250 million IPO from July 28 to July 30.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: PesaPot and RedCloud Partner to Bring Mobile Technology Platform to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Kenya
PesaPot – a technology company headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya – has announced a partnership with RedCloud – a technology platform that offers access to financial services over the internet – to provide mobile technology to the microfinance sector in Kenya. The alliance will provide microfinance institutions (MFIs) with technology that is intended to both improve the efficiency of their operations as well as reduce costs.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) Releases “2009 Africa Microfinance Analysis & Benchmarking Report” in French
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has recently released a new version of the “2009 Africa Microfinance Analysis & Benchmarking Report” in French, which covers information on 195 African microfinance institutions (MFIs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Dr Sanjay Sinha of M-CRIL Takes Issue with CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor)
Dr Sanjay Sinha, managing director at Micro-Credit Ratings International (M-CRIL), authored an article featured in Microfinance Focus in which he proposed changes to several of the ideas advocated by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), an independent policy and research center housed at the World Bank Group.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mr Vijay Mahajan, President of Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN) and Chairman of CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), Argues Banks Should Charge Microfinance Institutions Less than 10%
In a recent interview featured on LiveMint, an Indian business newspaper owned by the Wall Street Journal, Mr Vijay Mahajan, President of the Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), a network of 39 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India, argued that “banks should charge less than 10 percent while lending to MFIs.”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) Releases New Funding Structure Data
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has recently released funding structure data, which covers information on 890 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in 86 countries, reporting on 13,000 outstanding obligations and USD 15 billion in outstanding debt.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Dr Youssef Fawaz of Sanabel Warns Syrian Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) of Unsustainable Business Practices at Seventh Annual Microfinance Network of Arab Countries Conference
DayPress news, a Syrian online news publication, recently reported on comments made by Youssef Fawaz, Board Director at Sanabel, a microfinance network of Arab countries, warning Syrian microfinance institutions (MFIs) that past growth rates cannot be replicated unless the industry reevaluates its business practices. At the seventh annual Microfinance Network of Arab Countries Conference in Damascus, Dr Fawaz cited 30-percent annual growth in microcredit in Syria over the past decade, but cautioned, “It is not possible to have sustainable growth without responsible practices, which are characterized by good internal governance and a responsible regulatory framework.”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: President of Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), Mr Vijay Mahajan, Confronts “Misconceptions” About Microfinance Industry
Mr Vijay Mahajan, President of the Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), a self-regulated network organization of 39 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India, authored an article recently published in India’s daily Economic Times addressing what he termed misconceptions about the microfinance industry.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Germany’s Environment Ministry, KfW to Launch $500m Microfinance Fund for Climate Projects in Brazil, Asia, Africa
Germany’s Federal Environment Ministry recently announced it would be launching a USD 500 million climate fund that will provide microloans for individual energy efficiency or renewables projects initially through local banks in Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Morocco, the Philippines and South Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Valuations Too High? Too Low? Depends Who You Ask
In the global microfinance industry, the topic of valuation is being debated by investors and representatives of microfinance institutions (MFIs). In an article released by the Financial Chronicle, a Hyderabad-based business news publication, Padmaja Reddy, managing director at Spandana Sphoorty Financial, proposes that MFIs share similar business models with banks and non-banking financial institutions, but are unjustly undervalued. Investors respond that the risks involved in MFI investment are too high. In a related article, The Wall Street Journal, a US-based business newspaper, cites the risks involved in MFI investment. Avnish Bajaj, managing director of Matrix Partners India which has an investment in one of India’s largest microfinance institutions, states, “There are elements of bubble in this sector. Over-lending, lack of processes, excessive geographical concentration and excessive product concentration,” all increase investors’ level of risk.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange Releases “Is Microfinance Growing Too Fast?” by Adrian Gonzalez Indicating Portfolio Quality Negatively Correlated with Increasing Number of Borrowers
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has released a paper by researcher Adrian Gonzalez entitled “Is Microfinance Growing Too Fast?”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: G20’s Financial Inclusion Experts Group (FIEG) Releases Nine “Principles for Innovative Financial Inclusion” at Leadership Summit in Toronto, Canada
The Financial Inclusion Experts Group (FIEG), a division of the G20 – a group of twenty finance ministers and central bank governors that discuss key issues in the global economy – released nine “Principles for Innovative Financial Inclusion” at the recent G20 leadership summit in Toronto. The principles are intended to form the basis of a concrete action plan for improving access to financial services for the poor, which will be released at the Seoul Summit in November.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Expansion Suggests Increased Default Risks Says Financial Times
As part of its ‘BeyondBrics’ publication on business markets in emerging countries, the Financial Times (FT), a business news organization based in London, England, has predicted increased default risks in microfinance institutions (MFIs). James Fontanella-Khan, an online editor for FT, states, “Microfinance is expanding fast in emerging countries. The number of financial institutions piling in to grab a slice of the market is expanding at an even faster rate.”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mimoza Enterprises Finance (Mimo) Receives $1.5m Loan from Unitus Incorporated, US Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and Citi Microfinance
Mimoza Enterprises Finance (Mimo), an Indian microfinance institution (MFI) with a gross loan portfolio of USD 5.1 million, has received a loan of USD 1.5 million from Unitus Incorporated, an international nonprofit organization that provides funding and consulting services to microfinance institutions.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) and Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) to Share Data With $187,000 Grant From Rockefeller Foundation
The Rockefeller Foundation, a US-based grantmaking organization, has awarded a USD 187,000 grant to two other US-based nonprofits, Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) and the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), to “increase transparency and comparability across microfinance and the broader impact investing industry.” The grant will be used to develop a data feed that will allow GIIN’s Impact Reporting and Investment Standards (IRIS) project, which was created to develop a common framework for defining, tracking and reporting the performance of “impact capital,” to access data from MIX.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) and Sanabel Grant Certificates of Transparency to 43 Arab Microfinance Institutions
The nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) and Sanabel, a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing Arabic microfinance, recently awarded certificates of transparency to 43 microfinance institutions from Arab countries.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) Calls for “Test Pilots” to Assess New Features of MIX Market Website, May Begin Charging for Premium Content
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has announced the launch of new services on its MIX Market website starting in July 2010, including mid-year data for select microfinance institutions (MFIs) and more comprehensive and up-to-date country profiles. According to MIX Market, eventually these services may only be available to paying subscribers, but the date of any such change is not specified.