In a recent press release, the Facility for Euro-Mediterranean Investment and Partnership (FEMIP), a division of the European Investment Bank (EIB) dedicated to the economic development of nine Mediterranean countries1, announced that it granted a long-term loan of TND 3.6 million (EUR 2 million/USD 2.9 million) to ENDA Inter-Arabe, a Tunisian microfinance institution (MFI). Based on an earlier MicroCapital report in July 2006, this marks EIB’s second loan to ENDA, and will be used to generate micro-loans and stimulate local investment.
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MICROCAPITAL STORY: Enda Inter-Arabe, the Tunisian Microfinance Institution Becomes the Latest Network Member to Join Women’s World Banking
Enda Inter-Arabe (Enda I-A), the first and largest microfinance institution (MFI) in Tunisia has joined Women’s World Banking (WWB), a US non-profit organization that works with 53 MFIs and banks in 29 countries worldwide. Tunisia is the third Arab country, after Jordan and Morocco, to be represented in the WWB network as part of their planned expansion into the Middle East.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Citi Foundation and Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund Announce 2007 Micro-entrepreneurship Awards Program in Pakistan to Highlight Microfinance
The Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund (PPAF), a Pakistani organization dedicated to assisting poor and rural communities in Pakistan, and Citi Foundation, a philanthropic outreach arm of Citigroup, announced they will hold for the third consecutive year an awards program dedicated to micro-entrepreneurship. The program, “Citi-PPAF Microentrepreneurship Awards Programme 2007,” will recognize the efforts made by micro-entrepreneurs to improve the quality of life for their families and their communities. It is designed to demonstrate the impact of microfinance on micro-entrepreneurs and poverty reduction.
PAPER WRAP-UP: Middle East Banking Sector Analysis 2007-2011
Published by Research and Markets, August 2007, 140 pages, purchase here.
This report can be purchased as an electronic PDF for EUR 1,926 (USD 2637); in hard copy for EUR 2,354 (USD 3223); on CD-ROM for EUR 2,354 (USD 3223); and a site license can be purchased for EUR 2,996 (USD 4102).
Research and Markets’s Middle East Banking Sector Analysis (2007-2011) provides an detailed report of the country-wide banking sector in Middle East, including products and services. Research and Markets, based in
NEWS WIRE: Total Bank Loans Demand in the Middle East Is Expected to Grow at the CAGR of 21.81% During 2007-2011
PRESS RELEASE: Global Microfinance Leader PlaNet Finance Opens First U.S. Office in New York City
NEW YORK, May 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — PlaNet Finance, an international non-profit organization dedicated to alleviating poverty throughout the world through the development of microfinance, announced today the opening of its first U.S. office, in New York City.
Since its founding nine years ago in Paris, PlaNet Finance has grown to work in 60 countries including Madagascar, Mexico, Argentina, Israel, Mexico, Brazil, Senegal and China.
Microfund for Women Receives $350,000 Loan from the ResponsAbility Global Microfinance Fund
Another deal coming to us courtesy of the CGAP-MIX MCM Newsletter, the Jordan based Microfund for Women received a USD 350,000 loan from responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund. Established in 1994, this not-for-profit Microfinance institution mission is to provide sustainable financial and non-financial services to micro-entrepreneurs in Jordan. According to the MIX Market, the microfinance clearing house, as of December 31st 2006, its gross loan portfolio equaled USD 8,803,185 and its total assets were USD 9,481,823. Its debt to equity ratio was 62.90%, and as of December 2006 Microfund for Women had 23,501 active borrowers.
Micro-banks Sought to Participate in Pilot Study to Foster Securitization of Microloan Portfolios
The Center for the Development of Social Finance (CDSF) is launching a project for the development of securitization style static pool analysis to the portfolio of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs). This project has received funding support from the Omidyar Network and Taylor Jordan Donor Advised Fund of the RSF Global Community Fund.
Static pool analysis involves the performance tracking of a pool of investments with similar risk-return profiles, typically loans that have similar vintages and underwriting criteria. Thus static pool analysis shows a financial institution’s true return on a pool by keeping it static. This allows the disaggregation of the overall loan portfolio into loan pools whose returns can be more accurately predicted and priced.
Paris-Based Société Générale Continues Wholesale Microfinance Activity With an Eye on Equity Investments
Headquartered in Paris, the Société Générale Group is the 7th largest French company by market capitalization and employs over 100,000 employees in 76 countries worldwide. The organization has three core business areas: retail banking and financial services, global investment management, and corporate investment banking. At the end of 2005, Société Générale reported nearly EUR 400 billion under asset management.
Currently, Société Générale (SG) is engaged in the microfinance sector through wholesale lending (p.64) in
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Credit Suisse Continues Microfinance Investment As Partner in responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund
Headquartered in
In 2003, Credit Suisse co-founded the responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund along with Raiffeisen Banking Group, Baumann & Cie Banquiers, and the Andromeda Fund. This fund provides investors with a combination of moderate financial returns coupled with social benefits. responsAbility loans between $50,000 and $1.5 million to MFIs for a maximum of 5 years at a rate equal to “LIBOR plus full cost plus full risk.” As of March 31, 2006 the fund’s total assets reached $50 million with over $45 million allocated to microfinance investments. In addition, investment advisory services to the responsAbility Fund are provided by BlueOrchard, IPC/ProCredit, FINCA International, Symbiotics, Opportunity International, and PlaNet Finance.
Additional Resources
1. ING “A Billion to Gain? A study on global financial institutions and microfinance,” February, 2006
2. ResponsAbility
3. MIX Market: “responsAbility”4. MIcrocapital Blog: “Best in Class Just Keeps Getting Better: Swiss responsAbility Microfinance Investment Fund Lends $1,755,095 to German ProCredit Holding.” February 16, 20065. Microcapital Blog: “Microfinance Investment Funds Ranked by Size and Microcredit Allocation” January 13, 20066. Microcapital Blog: “ResponsAbility Global Microfinance Fund Investing More than $7m in 11 Microfinance Institutions in Jordan, Benin, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Peru” January 6, 2006
7. Credit Suisse