Switzerland’s BlueOrchard Finance recently disbursed an equity placement of undisclosed size from the InsuResilience Investment Fund (IIF), a Luxembourg-domiciled public-private partnership, for IIF to buy a minority stake in Cambodia’s Forte Insurance Group. BlueOrchard’s investment director for the continent, Thibaud Ponchon, expressed confidence that the placement will “drive the penetration of
Search Results for: cambodia
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Beyond Wage Digitization: Financial Capability and Economic Empowerment of Cambodian Women Migrant Workers,” Published by Women’s World Banking (WWB)
This report analyzes the financial awareness, financial behaviors and economic empowerment of 2,800 women – mostly migrants – who work in 13 factories in Cambodia and are paid via digital accounts with Wing Bank. The authors’ initial literature review indicated
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institutions in Cambodia Restructured $1.7b in Loans During Early 2021, Requests for Restructuring Peaked in 2nd Quarter
Kaing Tongngy, the director of communications for the 114-member Cambodia Microfinance Association (CMA), reportedly has stated that CMA members restructured approximately USD 1.7 billion in loans during the first six months of 2021. At the beginning of 2021, around
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ESCAP, SHE Investments, UNCDF Build Bookkeeping App Kotra Riel to Assist Women Microentrepreneurs in Cambodia
The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) and Cambodia’s SHE (Support Her Enterprise) Investments recently released a bookkeeping app, Kotra Riel,’ targeting
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Has the Pandemic Spared Cambodia? Liquidity Considerations of Cambodia’s Large MFIs,” by Sanjay Sinha, Published by M-CRIL
The purpose of this paper is “to enable understanding of the finances of [microfinance institutions] in Cambodia and the potential role and expectations of investors in supporting the microfinance ecosystem of the country.” While other sources have sounded alarms
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Good Return, UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP) to Support Women’s SMEs in Cambodia, Fiji, Nepal, Samoa with Credit Guarantees, Technical Assistance
Good Return, the Australia-based affiliate of the US-based NGO World Education, recently partnered with the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to support women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through a credit guarantee scheme in Cambodia, Fiji, Nepal and Samoa. Under the program, “International impact investors will be providing the funds to be guaranteed to partner financial institutions” in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Cambodia Implements $100m Co-financing Scheme for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Partnership with Private Banks, Microfinance Institutions
Through its SME Bank, Cambodia’s Ministry of Economy and Finance is carrying out a Co-financing Scheme for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in partnership with about 30 banks and microfinance institutions (MFIs). The program, which has a budget of USD 100 million, is open to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kookmin Paying $603m to LOLC for 70% Equity Stake in Microfinance Institution Prasac of Cambodia
South Korea’s KB Financial Group, whose name derives from its Kookmin Bank, recently issued the first of two tranches it agreed pay for 70 percent of the shares of Prasac, a microbank in Cambodia. Sri Lanka’s LOLC Group, whose name comes from the former Lanka Orix Leasing Company, will take in a total of USD 603 million on the deal, which has been approved by all pertinent regulators. Prasac has 180 branches and 150 automated teller machines (ATMs). As of 2019, it had total assets of USD 3.1 billion, USD 1.8 billion in deposits and a loan portfolio of USD 2.5 billion outstanding to 417,000 borrowers.
KB President Hur Yin said, “With long-term plans to turn Prasac into a
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest in Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Refinances $26m in Microloans for MFIs in Cambodia, Ecuador, Georgia
During February 2020, IIV Mikrofinanzfonds, a fund managed by Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV), refinanced microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Ecuador, Georgia and Cambodia by purchasing non-securitized loan claims totaling USD 26 million. While the names of the other MFIs remain confidential,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation Loans $3.8m to Proximity, Chamroeun for Microfinance in Myanmar, Cambodia
The Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg, recently issued the following loans: (1) MMK 3 billion (USD 2 million) to Proximity Designs, a US-registered NGO that operates exclusively in Myanmar; and (2) USD 1.8 million to Chamroeun of Cambodia to help
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Loans $2.4m to Vision Fund Myanmar, Phare Performing Social Enterprise of Cambodia
The Luxembourg-based Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation recently issued loans of EUR 1.8 million (USD 2.0 million) to VisionFund Myanmar, a member of VisionFund International, and the equivalent of USD 367,000 to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Beneficial Returns Issues Loan to ATEC Biodigesters to Launch Pay-as-you-go Model in Cambodia, Boosting Usage of Renewable Energy, Organic Fertilizer
ATEC Biodigesters International, an Australia-registered clean technology (cleantech) company that is active in Cambodia, recently accepted an unspecified amount of debt financing from US-based investor Beneficial Returns. ATEC plans to use the loan to launch a
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest in Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Lends $21.4m to Microfinance Institutions in Bolivia, Cambodia, Kosovo, Moldova, Tajikistan – Including $11.1m to Eskhata Bank
Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV) recently loaned EUR 10 million (USD 11.1 million) to Eskhata Bank, a provider of microfinance and traditional financial services in Tajikistan, in an effort to stimulate economic development in the country, including in rural areas. The investment is one of a group of loans totaling
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution LOLC Completes $20m Bond Issue on Cambodia Securities Exchange
LOLC (Cambodia) Plc, a microfinance institution (MFI) controlled by LOLC International Private Limited of Singapore, recently announced the listing of Cambodia’s second-ever corporate bond on the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX). LOLC Cambodia raised a total of KHR 80 billion (USD 20 million) through the issuance of two types of bonds underwritten by Taiwan-based Yuanta Securities: (1) fixed-coupon bonds and (2) FX-indexed bonds whose coupon payment varies depending on the KHR-USD exchange rate, thus protecting investors from foreign-exchange (FX) risk. The
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation Disburses Local-currency Loan Worth $2.8m to AMK Microfinance Institution of Cambodia
The Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg, recently informed MicroCapital that it has lent the equivalent of EUR 2.5 million (USD 2.8 million) in local currency to AMK Microfinance Institution, which was founded in Cambodia in 2003 under
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: First Bond Issue Ever on Cambodian Securities Exchange Is by Microfinance Institution Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL) to Benefit Farmers, Other Rural Entrepreneurs
With encouragement from the Cambodian government, microfinance institution Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL) recently issued the first corporate bonds ever on the Cambodian Securities Exchange (CSX). The issue raised the USD equivalent of 30 million
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Chamroeun Borrowing $1.2m from Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation for Microfinance in Cambodia
The Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg, recently informed MicroCapital that it is lending USD 1.2 million to Chamroeun Microfinance. Chamroeun was launched in 2006 as a nonprofit by French NGO Entrepreneurs du Monde to deliver loans, savings, and microinsurance to poor people in the city of Phnom Penh. The institution has since
SPECIAL REPORT: A Model from Cambodia for Preventing Overheating – Not Just Multiple Lending; to be Presented at European Microfinance Week; November 14-16, 2018
Since 
2016, the 95-member Cambodia Microfinance Association (CMA), Incofin, MIMOSA, the Credit Bureau of Cambodia, and several other stakeholders have been developing the CMA Lending Guidelines, under which microfinance institutions (MFIs) are working together to prevent over-indebtedness in Cambodia. The project is funded by Incofin, PROPARCO, BIO, FMO and ADA.
MicroCapital: How long have you been concerned about possible overheating in the Cambodian microfinance market?
Kea Borann: Concerns of the market overheating started at least as early as 2015. Since then, the total outstanding portfolio of the industry has been growing at an average of 25 percent per year, even as the number of loans has remained unchanged at 2.3 million. This seems to mean that the same clients are taking on more debt when their loans are renewed. The average loan size grew from USD 1,691 to