CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), a US-based, nonprofit policy and research center that aims to facilitate the expansion of financial access, has launched its “Global Pulse Survey on Responsible Digital Finance”[1].
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MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Homeless International Purchases T24 MCB Banking Software from Temenos
Homeless International, a UK-based nonprofit housing consultancy and finance agency that focuses on reducing urban poverty in Africa and Asia, has purchased T24 MCB, a cloud-based core banking software platform that was developed for the microfinance and community banking (MCB) segment by Temenos Group AG, a software company based in Switzerland.
MICROCAPITAL PAPER WRAP-UP: “Technical Guide: Performance and Social Indicators for Microfinance Institutions;” by Sebastian von Stauffenberg, Damian von Stauffenberg, Maritza Rodriguez, Rebecca Spradlin, Antonio Bryant; Published by MicroRate
“Technical Guide: Performance and Social Indicators for Microfinance Institutions;” by Sebastian von Stauffenberg, Damian von Stauffenberg, Maritza Rodriguez, Rebecca Spradlin and Antonio Bryant; Published by MicroRate; 2014; 64 pages; available at http://www.microrate.com/media/downloads/2014/05/MicroRate_-Technical-Guide-20142.pdf
Published by MicroRate, a US-based rating agency that evaluates risk and performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs), this guide provides an outline on how to assess the quality of an MFI.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION WRAP-UP: “Spotlight on the Market, The Impact Investor Study;” by Yasemin Saltuk, Ali El Idrissi; published by J.P. Morgan Global Social Finance, Global Impact Investing Network
“Spotlight on the Market, The Impact Investor Study;” published by J.P. Morgan Global Social Finance and Global Impact Investing Network; May 2014; 52 pages; available at http://www.jpmorganchase.com/corporate/socialfinance/document/140502-Spotlight_on_the_market-FINAL.pdf
This study, prepared by US-based financial institution J.P. Morgan and US-based nonprofit Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), details the findings of the organizations’ fourth annual survey about “impact investments,” which are defined as those made “with the intention to generate social and environmental impact alongside a financial return.”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Partner Microcredit Foundation (PMCF) of Bosnia and Herzegovina Borrows $5.5m from Green for Growth Fund (GGF) for Energy Efficiency Financing
Partner Microcredit Foundation (PMCF), a microfinance institution in Bosnia and Herzegovina, recently borrowed EUR 4 million (USD 5.48 million) under a senior credit agreement from Green for Growth Fund, Southeast Europe (GGF), a Luxembourg-based organization focusing on the use of renewable energy sources and enhancing energy efficiency.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Islamic Social Finance, Transforming Client Complaints into Loyalty, Microinsurance Profitability
“Islamic Social Finance Report 2014,” by Thomson Reuters and the Islamic Research and Training Institute, published by Zawya, 2014, 64 pages, available at: http://www.zawya.com/islamic-finance/isfr/
This report examines opportunities and challenges for Islamic social finance in Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan and Singapore.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Impact Investing at a Crossroads Raising Awareness, Expanding Product Offerings, Sound Metrics and Mainstreaming Were Among Key Themes at “5th Annual Impact Conference at Sustainatopia 2014”
Panelists at the recent Fifth Annual Impact Conference at Sustainatopia in the US city of Miami, Florida, showed consensus on some of the short-term steps needed to develop the impact investing sector toward becoming a mainstream, investable asset class that is attractive from a risk-reward perspective.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) Allocates $5.3m to Test, Develop Social Impact Bond Market in Latin America, Caribbean
The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the US-based Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently announced that it has allocated USD 5.3 million for the testing, development and implementation of social impact bond (SIB) programs in Latin America and the Caribbean.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: National Bank of Rwanda (BNR) Maintains Repurchase (Repo) Rate at 7%
The National Bank of Rwanda, which is known by its French acronym BNR, has announced that it will maintain the key repurchase (repo) rate, the rate at which commercial banks borrow from the central bank, at 7 percent.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Government Efforts to Achieve Financial Inclusion in India; Index-based Insurance in South, Southeast Asia; Microinsurance Claims Management
“Report of the Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low Income Households;” published by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI); December 31, 2013; 247 pages; available at http://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/PublicationReport/Pdfs/CFS070114RFL.pdf
This report was authored by the Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low Income Households, which was appointed by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in September 2013 to propose measures for increasing access to financial services in India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Germany’s Kreditech Raises $15m in Debt from Kreos Capital for Lending in Eurasia, Latin America
Kreditech, a German technology company that uses an online platform to assess the creditworthiness of loan applicants, recently announced that it has raised USD 15 million in debt financing from UK-based venture capital firm Kreos Capital (Kreos).
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Women and Mobile Financial Services in Uganda; Quantitative Poverty Scoring Methods; European Investment Bank’s Rural Impulse Fund II Symposium in Africa
“Research on Women and Usability of Mobile Financial Services in Uganda;” published by Grameen Foundation; February 2014; 40 pages; available at http://www.grameenfoundation.org/resource/use-mobile-financial-services-among-poor-women
This presentation gives an overview of the Uganda-specific results of a series of studies undertaken by the US-based nonprofit Grameen Foundation with the goal of understanding how mobile-phone usability, or lack thereof, impacts the ability of poor women to access mobile financial services in India, the Philippines and Uganda.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: First Access Purchases Data for Risk-Scoring Service from Cellular Network Provider Vodacom Tanzania
US-based data analytics company First Access reportedly has signed a deal to purchase user data from cellular network provider Vodacom Tanzania, a subsidiary of UK-based telecommunications company Vodafone Group, for their risk-scoring service for financial institutions serving poor individuals.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Entrepreneurial Finance Lab Offers Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) Credit Scores for Micro-, Small Enterprises (MSEs) Based on Psychometric Tests
In an effort to promote financing to self-employed entrepreneurs and micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) in emerging economies, Entrepreneurial Finance Lab (EFL), a US-based company, is employing psychometric analyses to assess the creditworthiness of loan applicants.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Considers Relaxing Capital Requirements for New Bank Licenses
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the country’s central banking authority, recently commissioned an investigative panel, the Committee on Comprehensive Financial Services for Small Businesses and Low Income Households (the Committee), to create a policy framework for achieving financial inclusion in India and to make formal recommendations on how to implement the framework.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Inclusix Index of Financial Inclusion in India; Obstacles to Access in Microinsurance; Microfinance in Kenya
“CRISIL Inclusix: An index to measure India’s progress on Financial Inclusion;” published by Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL); June 2013; 101 pages; available at http://crisil.com/pdf/corporate/CRISIL-Inclusix.pdf
Based on data from 2009 through 2011, this report gives an overview of the findings of the CRISIL Inclusix index, an analytical tool designed by Credit Rating Information Services of India Limited (CRISIL) to measure progress in financial inclusion in India at the national, regional, state and district levels.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Switzerland’s State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) Commits $9m to Sanad Fund to Support Micro-, Small and Medium-Enterprises (MSMEs) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA)
The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs, a Swiss government agency that works in developing countries and is known by the acronym SECO, reportedly has invested EUR 5.5 million (USD 7.4 million) in the Sanad Fund for Micro-, Small and Medium-Enterprise (MSME), a Luxembourg-based entity that funds financial institutions in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Effectiveness of Microfinance in Cambodia; Scaling Up in Agriculture and Development; Mobile Savings in Ecuador
“AMK Cambodia – Have AMK loans helped its clients improve their overall wellbeing?”, published by Angkor Mikroheranhvatho Kampuchea (AMK); January 2014; 12 pages; available at https://www.incofin.com/sites/default/files/attachments/newsitems/Change%20Study_AMK_2014.pdf
This report explores the results of a five-year study of the effectiveness of Angkor Mikroheranhvatho Kampuchea (AMK), a Cambodian microfinance institution, in helping increase its clients’ livelihoods through microcredit services.