Barclays, a London-based international financial services provider, recently announced its commitment to the ‘Business Call to Action” (BCtA) initiative, a global initiative that aims to support the private sector in meeting the UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).
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MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution (MFI) EB-ACCION Microfinance of Cameroon Forecasts Serving 70k Savers in First Five Years
In its first five years of operation, EB-ACCION Microfinance, a microfinance institution (MFI) based in Cameroon, expects to open 71,000 savings accounts, accumulating total deposits of USD 30.8 million while serving 28,400 borrowers with an outstanding loan portfolio of USD 32 million [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Book by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Economist Robert M Townsend, “Financial Systems in Developing Economies”, Uses Thailand As Case Study for Analyzing Finance Policies
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Economist Robert M Townsend offers a framework for evaluating the impact of various financial policies in emerging economies in his new book, Financial Systems in Developing Economies.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC), MicroSave Publish “Deposit: Assessment in India” in Support of Increasing Savings Microfinance in India
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, and MicroSave, a for-profit microfinance training and technical resource center based in India, recently published a report entitled “Deposit: Assessment in India,” that argues in favor of supporting microsavings services for low-income individuals in India as a way to increase utilization of financial services.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFTransparency, Rural Bankers Association, Microfinance Council of the Philippines to Launch Transparent Pricing Initiative
MFTransparency, a US-based nongovernmental organization (NGO) that aims to provide information on credit products and pricing, is expanding its Transparent Pricing Initiative to the Philippines in partnership with Microfinance Council of the Philippines, a trade association of microfinance organizations in the Philippines, and Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP), a Philippines-based organization founded in 1955 to promote the rural banking industry [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Advans SA Launches Microfinance Institution (MFI) Advans Bank Tanzania in Dar es Salaam
Advans SA, a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) registered in Luxembourg, recently announced the launch of Advans Bank Tanzania in Dar es Salaam. As reported by MicroCapital in November, 2010, the new microfinance institution (MFI) will offer products such as loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), savings accounts in local and foreign currencies and domestic money transfers.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Microfinance Investment Summit Africa to Be Held April 5 – 7, 2011, in Johannesburg, South Africa
Event Name: Microfinance Investment Summit Africa
Event Date: April 5 – April 7, 2011
Event Location: Johannesburg, South Africa
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Islamic Microfinance Network (IMFN) Launches in Pakistan, Will Serve Shariah Microlenders Worldwide
Islamic Microfinance Network (IMFN) has recently launched in Pakistan with the aim to provide a common platform for Islamic microfinance institutions (MFIs) around the world. Headquartered in Lahore, the network is also looking to establish regional offices in Ghana, Mauritius and the Middle East.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFTransparency Launches Transparent Pricing Initiative in Rwanda Aiming to Reduce Interest Rates on Microfinance Loans
MFTransparency, a US-based nongovernmental watchdog that focuses on interest rates in the microfinance industry, recently expanded its Transparent Pricing Initiative to Rwanda to educate citizens in that country on interest rates in an effort to impel microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the country to lower microfinance interest rates. Plans for this expansion were announced on this website in October.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Expands Microinsurance in Kenya and Rwanda through Syngenta, International Livestock Research Institute, MicroEnsure
Recently, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an organization under the World Bank Group that has been a significant source of financing for the microfinance industry, agreed to confer to three microinsurance projects in East Africa a grant of USD 4.1 million, which is expected to allow 35,000 farmers and 5,000 livestock herders in Rwanda and Kenya to protect their crops and livestock from natural disasters.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Standard Chartered, MicroSave Launch Microfinance Risk Management Toolkit
The Bangladesh branch of Standard Chartered PLC, an international bank headquartered in the United Kingdom that reported total assets of USD 436 billion in 2009, and MicroSave, a company based in India that specializes in technical assistance and training for microfinance organizations, have jointly launched a risk management toolkit for microfinance institutions (MFIs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Lends $1M to Cameroonian Microfinance Institution (MFI) Advans Cameroun
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, recently provided XAF 500 million (approximately USD 1.01 million) in local currency loan to Advans Cameroun, a microfinance institution (MFI) that is controlled by the Luxembourg- based investment firm Advans SA.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) Investing $7m in Regional MSME Investment Fund for Sub-Saharan Africa SA (REGMIFA)
The Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO), a Dutch public-private partnership that aims to promote developing economies, has committed USD 7.5 million to the Regional MSME Investment Fund for Sub-Saharan Africa SA, SICAV-SIF (REGMIFA), a Luxembourg-based fund that seeks to invest in micro-, small and medium sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: YouthSave Project Launches New Website Targeting Young People With Microfinance
YouthSave Project, a consortium of youth- and microfinance-focused NGOs, has launched a website that will feature the research of the YouthSave Project, as well as broader information on youth savings accounts around the globe.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroSave Launches Social Performance Management Framework for Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)
MicroSave, an organization that provides technical assistance to microfinance institutions (MFIs), recently unveiled its flagship Social Performance Management framework, which aims to improve MFIs’ social and business performance.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Advans SA Set to Open Microfinance Bank (MFB) Advans Bank Tanzania in December 2010
Advans SA, a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) registered in Luxembourg that mobilizes funds for microfinance institutions (MFIs), has announced that it has scheduled the opening of the first branch of its sixth microfinance bank (MFB), Advans Bank Tanzania, in Dar es Salaam in December of this year.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: African Development Bank (AfDB), Governments of Denmark and Spain to Create African Guarantee Fund (AGF) to Bring Economic Resources to African Businesses Including Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)
The governments of Denmark and Spain, as well as the African Development Bank (AfDB) have combined resources to create the African Guarantee Fund (AGF), a non-bank financial institution intended to boost the economy and reduce poverty in Africa through improved access to funds for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFTransparency Launches Transparent Microfinance Pricing Initiative in Rwanda and Uganda
MFTransparency, a US-based nongovernmental organization launched in July 2008 that aims to provide information on credit products and pricing, the Association of Micro Finance Institutions in Rwanda and the Association of Microfinance Institutions of Uganda, are partnering to expand MFTransparency’s Transparent Pricing Initiative to those two countries with the aim of providing training on interest rate calculations, publishing online pricing information and promoting consumer protection.