Director Tori Hogan’s Ninth Episode (entitled “Micro-lending”) of a ten-part film series “Beyond Good Intentions” takes a critical look at the realities of micro-lending by questioning the impact of one of the world’s respected and favorite microfinance organization: Kiva.org (Kiva). Ms. Hogan openly debates that while she has total respect and admiration for the numerous successful work performed by the Kiva organization and the team, her experiences and research in the microfinance field, specifically in both Cambodia and Mozambique, left much to be desired. Outside of the interviews and assessments, Ms. Hogan does not reference the vast amount of material currently available to the public that is critical of microfinance.
Search Results for: colombia
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Co-Operative Bank and Deutsche Bank to Launch a USD 50 Million Microfinance Fund to Directly Target Credit Unions and Co-operatives
Co-Operative Bank and Deutsche Bank (DB) have recently announced the launch of a USD 50 million microfinance fund to target credit unions and co-operatives directly. The “Global Co-operative Development Fund” (GCDF) is expected to launch this month and will be open to investors in the fourth quarter 2009. The fund aims to provide capital to the poorest communities with a geographical target of Central Europe, Asia, and Latin and Central America. The GCDF will be managed by Deutsche Bank and sub-managed by Oikocredit. The Co-operative Bank will be principal sponsor for the GCDF. No additional information regarding how the fund will function is provided.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Zurich Bolivia and Microfinance Bank BancoSol To Offer Life Insurance To Bolivian Emigrants
Zurich Bolivia, a unit of Zurich Financial Services, and the microfinance bank BancoSol of Bolivia have partnered to offer insurance to Bolivian emigrants in Spain. The insurance comes in four different plans. The first plan, requiring a premium of USD 57, covers 10,000 dollars in case of death due to any cause and the return of the body to Bolivia. The second plan, requiring an annual premium of USD 86, offers the same benefits, as well as home expenses for the family for one calendar year. The third plan, requiring a premium of USD 100, covers the return of the body to Bolivia and the cost of education for two children up to USD 300 per year per child. The fourth plan, requiring a premium of USD 129, includes all of the above benefits.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Inter-American Development Bank’s Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) and Corporation Andina de Fomento (CAF) Back Ratings For Microfinance Institutions
The Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB) Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) and Corporacion Andina de Fomento (CAF) have announced they will support a project to assist small-scale microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America and the Carribbean obtain credit risk ratings and performance assessments. The new project will give priority to MFIs with loan portfolios between USD 1 million and USD 15 million, with average loans not exceeding USD 3,000. The MIF and CAF will help cover part of the cost of the credit risk ratings and performance assessments: the MIF will provide a grant of USD 986,161, CAF will provide USD 200,000 and participating MFIs will provide USD 400,000.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: Pioneer in Microfinance Investing, Triodos Bank, Wins 2009 Sustainable Banking Award by Financial Times (FT) and International Finance Corporation (IFC); MicroEnsure and Root Capital Also Take Prizes
The Financial Times (FT) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced the winners of the 2009 Sustainable Banking Awards. Triodos Bank of the Netherlands was named Sustainable Bank of the Year. Other microfinance programs were recognized, with MicroEnsure winning the award for Achievement in Basic Needs Financing, and Root Capital taking the Achievement in Banking at the Bottom of the Pyramid award.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Invests over $514m in Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) Initiatives During 2008
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, provides investment and advisory services to developing countries. Created in 1956, the IFC seeks to foster sustainable economic growth by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Within its Global Financial Markets sector, the IFC supports microfinance in order to promote successful and sustainable economies in low and middle income countries. The IFC provides direct and indirect investment and advisory services to the microfinance sector. Its focus is on creating and supporting commercially viable microfinance institutions (MFIs) that can attract private capital thereby responding to unmet demand for micro loans. Furthermore it seeks to demonstrate the business case for commercial microfinance and also promote it as an asset class to private institutional investors. During 2008 the IFC invested USD 513.8 million in micro small and medium enterprise (MSME) initiatives and provided USD 840,000 worth of advisory services. Following is detailed information about IFCs activities in the microfinance arena.
NEWS WIRE: United States: The Crisis and Microfinance in Latin America
Source: eGov Monitor.
NEWS WIRE: India: Banks Building Innovative Distribution Channels Through Microfinance Institutions to Reach the Bottom of the Pyramid
Source: Outlook Business (India).
MICROCAPITAL STORY: PlaNet Finance to Expand Microinsurance Program Across Middle East and North Africa
PlaNet Finance Group plans to expand its microinsurance schemes throughout the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), following the implementation of a microinsurance program in Egypt with First Microfinance Foundation (FMF) and global insurance company Allianz.
NEWS WIRE: Peru: Microfinance Helps Women in Financial Crisis
Source: Inter Press Service
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Latin America – Caribbean Regional Microcredit Summit, June 8-10, 2009
Latin America – Caribbean Regional Microcredit Summit, June 8-10, 2009, Cartagena, Colombia.
Summary of Event: This is the 13th Microcredit Summit since the first summit held in Washington DC in 1997. The summit will offer the opportunity for microcredit practitioners, advocates, investors, donors, non-government organizations, financial institutions and those committed to the summits’ goals to assess progress, address challenges and discuss strategies for achieving the 2015 goals. Delegates will also come together to share microfinance best practices and network. The conference will be in Spanish and English depending upon the workshop session.
See Our Comprehensive Event Calendar Here: http://microfinanceassociation.ning.com/events
Cost: Registrants from Latin America and the Caribbean USD 250; all other registrants USD 300. This excludes 16 percent tax and must be paid in USD. This includes all sessions (seating may be limited), closing dinner and all lunches. This does not include field visits and day-long courses post summit.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: ACCION International’s CEO Maria Otero To Be United States Under Secretary of Democracy and Global Affairs
The White House has nominated the president and CEO of ACCION International, Ms. Maria Otero, to assume the position of Under Secretary of Democracy and Global Affairs in the US Department of State. Although the Senate Foreign Relations Committee has yet to approve the nomination, Ms. Otero has indicated that she will accept the position should her nomination be successful. Ms. Otero has been profiled in MicroCapital’s Who’s Who in Microfinance series in May 2007. Her position at ACCION International will be filled temporarily by Ms. Catherine Quense, Chief Administrative Officer and Chief Deputy, while a committee searches for Ms. Oteros successor. Ms. Diana Taylor, Vice Chair of the ACCION Board, comments, “Her nomination as Under Secretary comes as no surprise to those of us who know her and her deep commitment to social and economic justice, and we know that she now has an even more effective platform from which to help build better lives for the world’s citizens.” Ms. Otero was born and raised until the age of 12 in La Paz, Bolivia, whereupon she and her family moved to Washington DC. She holds a BA in Literature from the University of Maryland and an MA in International Relations from Johns Hopkins. She has been with ACCION since 1986 and became CEO in 2000. ACCION International is a microfinance organization founded in 1961 and consisting of 27 partner microfinance institutions (MFIs) in 20 countries. The position of Under Secretary of Democracy and Global Affairs was established under Section 161(b) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995. In total, there are five Under Secretaries of State in the Department of State, headed by Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton.
CGAP Microfinance Dealbook: March 2009 Transactions
The CGAP Microfinance Dealbook publicizes microfinance capital market transactions in an effort to bring greater transparency to the industry. This information is made freely available as a public service. Parties to microfinance transactions are encouraged to submit their deals to this effort. The following deals were collected for March 2009:
MICROCAPITAL STORY: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Microfinance Investment Deals from January to April 2009 in Latin American and the Caribbean
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank, is one of the top five investors in Latin America and the Caribbean. The IFC contributed 11 percent of total LAC funding according to a 2008 survey. Development Finance Investors (DFIs) such as the IFC are government owned bilateral or multilateral development agencies with investments in microfinance. The IFC makes direct and indirect investments and also has an advisory arm. Direct investments may establish microfinance institutions (MFIs) and indirect investments are in microfinance investment vehicles such as private investment funds. In their advisory role the IFC provides training and technical support, partners with organizations such as the World Bank and the Consultative Group to the Poor (CGAP) and supports innovative technology.
MICROCAPITAL STORY: The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) invests USD 10.1m, including USD 1.6m in Microfinance, in Latin America and the Caribbean during March and April 2009
The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), administered by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) is one of the largest public sector Development Finance Institutions (DFI) in the Americas. DFIs are government owned bilateral or multilateral development agencies whose investments include microfinance deals. DFIs make either direct or indirect investments. Direct investments are in microfinance institutions (MFIs) and indirect investments are in microfinance investment vehicles such as private investment funds. The majority of investments are direct and in hard currency (USD).
MICROCAPITAL STORY: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Investing USD 15m in Azerbaijan’s AccessBank to Expand Microfinance Services
The International Finance Corporation (IFC) announced that it will be investing up to USD 15 million in Azerbaijan’s AccessBank. AccessBank provides financial services to Micro and Small Enterprises (MSE) within Azerbaijan. Its mission is to be the leading provider of credit to MSE’s. The IFC, a member of the World Bank, will provide this long term loan to reach underserved regions of the country and provide micro and small businesses with access to credit.
PAPER WRAP-UP: Cautious Resilience: The Impact of the Global Financial Crisis on Latin American & Caribbean Microfinance Institutions, by Sebastian von Stauffenberg
Sebastian von Stauffenberg, MicroRate’s author of the 52 page report, provides a framework for how the impact of the global financial crisis on Latin America and the Caribbean MFIs evolved during the last quarter of 2008.
While MFIs initially reported that the global financial crisis had yet to affect the economy in the LAC region, the latest data suggests that lending in 2008 slowed more dramatically than MFIs admitted to in October and November 2008. MFIs reduced the number of loans to higher risk clients, enforced stricter lending criteria and strengthened provisioning policies, with some MFIs reducing their average loan balance.
WHO’S WHO IN MICROFINANCE: Dave Valle
Dave Valle, a former Major League Baseball player for the Seattle Mariners, is the founder of microcredit agency Esperanza, whose mission is to help the poor in the Dominican Republic and Haiti start their own businesses. In addition to making loans, Esperanza has become active in community development: creating a school, computer training centers, a member-funded health care plan, a water treatment system, and a home improvement initiative. The organization has also spearheaded the construction of five baseball fields.