MicroEnsure, a UK-based nonprofit microinsurance intermediary, has partnered with Bankers Assurance Corporation, a Filipino for-profit insurance company, and MI Central Corporation, a Filipino marketing and distribution company, to roll out a retail microinsurance product called Triple 10 in the Philippines.
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MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Simplified Tax Code for Microenterprises in Romania Snares Unprofitable Businesses
The government of Romania reportedly has simplified the tax rate for microenterprises, obliging them to pay a 3-percent tax on turnover.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grupo ACP’s Forjadores de Negocios Begins Operations in Mexico as Licensed Bank Banco Forjadores
Forjadores de Negocios, a Mexican microfinance institution (MFI) majority-held by Peruvian NGO Grupo ACP, recently began operations as Banco Forjadores, having received permission from Mexican banking authorities to convert to a multiservice bank in 2012.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation Invests $28m in Equity in Bhutan National Bank to Increase Financial Inclusion; Lending to Micro-, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, has invested USD 28 million in Bhutan National Bank, a publicly owned commercial bank, to increase its lending to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Master’s Degree Funding Available from Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP)
Applications are open through March 31 for the 2013 Joint Japan/World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program (JJ/WBGSP), a program that grants scholarships for individuals to obtain master’s degrees in subjects related to economic development.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mongolia’s Khan Bank Announces E-Banking Outreach Campaign
Khan Bank, a Mongolian provider of microfinance and other services, recently launched its “Welcome to the E-Banking World” campaign to provide information about E-banking services, such as payment services available via the internet and mobile phones.
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “2012 MicroMeter;” published by India’s Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN)
Published by the Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN); 2013; 40 pages; available at: http://www.microfinancegateway.org/gm/document-1.9.60963/MicroMeter_Feb%202013_Issue%2004_5th%20Feb%202013_for%20distribution.pdf
The Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), an association of 47 Indian microlenders, has released the fourth issue of MicroMeter, an analysis of the Indian microfinance industry’s performance during the third quarter (Q3) of fiscal year (FY) 2012-2013 (spanning October to December 2012).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: SME Finance Forum Launches New Website
The Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) Finance Forum, a platform of the G-20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) that is managed by the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), recently launched a new website.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Microfinance Handbook; Evolution of Microfinance; Impact of Private Sector Investment on Job Creation
“The New Microfinance Handbook: A Financial Market System Perspective;” edited by Joanna Ledgerwood, Julie Earne and Candace Nelson; published by the World Bank Group; February 2013; 504 pages; available at: https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle/10986/12272
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) to Guarantee Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) Loans, Largely in Sub-Saharan Africa
The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a Luxembourg-based nonprofit that provides financial services to microfinance institutions, recently signed a risk and technical assistance agreement with the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), a bi-lateral development finance institution of the French government, to further GCAMF’s microfinance efforts, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Koota of India Receives $9.8m in Equity from Incofin, MicroVentures, Aavishkaar Goodwell, Creation Investments; $4m in Debt Funding from Deutsche Bank Microfinance Fund
Indian non-banking financial company (NBFC) Grameen Financial Services Private Limited, also known as Grameen Koota, recently received INR 532 million (USD 9.8 million) in its third round equity funding from Beligium-based investment company Incofin, Italy-based private equity firm MicroVentures, Indian-Dutch joint venture Aavishkaar Goodwell, and US-based for-profit company Creation Investments.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Itau Unibanco of Brazil Commits $167m to Microloans for Urban Entrepreneurs in Concert with Business Call to Action, UN Millennium Development Goals
Brazilian bank Itau Unibanco recently joined the Business Call to Action (BCtA), a multi-organization initiative that seeks to reduce poverty through the private sector in support of the United Nations Millenium Development Goals (MDGs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mobile Banking Technology, ATMs “An Emerging Trend” Among Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia
As competition in the microfinance industry of Cambodia increases, microfinance institutions (MFIs) are investing in technological upgrades to keep up with the market.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE) Plans Policy Framework to Regulate Microinsurance
The National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), the county’s central bank, is reportedly planning to draft a policy framework to regulate the microinsurance industry.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Anne Hastings of Fonkoze Outlines Framework for National Mobile Money Systems
Anne Hastings, CEO of Haitian microfinance institution Fonkoze Financial Services, recently summarized the challenges outlined by a panel hosted by the Better Than Cash Alliance (BTC), a US-based NGO that promotes financial inclusion through mobile banking, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January 2013. The panel discussed the benefits and challenges of making the transition from cash to electronic payments.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Absolute Portfolio Management Loans $8.5m From Dual Return Funds to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Indonesia, Russia
Absolute Portfolio Management (APM), an Austria-based microfinance investment and asset management company, has told MicroCapital that it issued the equivalent of USD 8.5 million in credit through funds it manages to microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Georgia, Indonesia and Russia during the month of February.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mongolia’s Khan Bank Launches Drive-through ATMs, Increases Number of Correspondent Banks
Khan Bank, a Mongolian provider of microfinance and other services, recently installed three drive-through automated teller machines in the city of Ulaanbaatar.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: SKS Microfinance May Challenge Andhra Pradesh Ruling in Supreme Court
In response to the February 2013 ruling from the High Court of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh that upheld the Andhra Pradesh Microfinance Institution Act, 2010, SKS Microfinance, an Indian for-profit microfinance institution, and other unspecified microlenders reportedly may challenge the decision in the Country’s Supreme Court.