by Greg Casey -

WHO’S WHO IN MICROFINANCE: The Legatum Group

The Legatum Group, founded in 2006 from the de-merger of Sovereign Global, is a collection of investment organizations based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The separate companies comprising Legatum include Legatum Capital, a global investment firm; Legatum Global Development, a socially-responsible investment firm that also provides grants and policy advocacy services to promote sustainable development; the Legatum Center for Development and Entrepreneurship at MIT; and the Legatum Institute, which is an independent policy advisory firm.

by Ryan Benson -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Unitus Launches $56m Microfinance Fund; Key Stakeholders Include Legatum, Omidyar Network

Seattle-based Unitus Equity Fund has raised USD 56 million that it plans to invest solely in commercial microfinance institutions throughout the world. Key stakeholders in the private equity fund include Legatum Group and Omidyar Network, each investing USD 20 million. The remaining USD 16 million was provided by an undisclosed source. Omidyar’s investment in the fund comes in the wake of an April 2008  MicroCapital report that Omidyar awarded a USD 9 million grant to Unitus, a nonprofit that is affiliated with the private equity fund. Omidyar’s grant supported Unitus’ three year expansion plan.

by Ryan Benson -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Bangladesh-based ASA to Allocate Funds from Historic $150m Equity Deal Toward Microlending Outside Bangladesh

ASA International, a holding company managed and partially owned by ASA, one of Bangladesh’s largest NGOs, has announced it will use USD $150 million of equity raised from foreign investors to expand commercial lending outside Bangladesh.

by Jennifer Lee -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: ING Review of Deutsche Bank’s Microfinance Activities, the Microcredit Development Fund, and the Global Commercial Microfinance Consortium

The Dutch Bank ING published its updated 2008 study on commercial bank microfinance activity, called “A Billion to Gain? The Next Phase”. A MicroCapital summary of the paper can be read here. MicroCapital is reviewing the microfinance activities of several of large international banks covered in the study, such as Deutsche Bank (DB).

by Amy Rennison -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: The Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) Trust to Launch USD 40 million Fund for Start-Up Microfinance Institutions in India

The Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) Trust of India is to establish a USD 40 million investment vehicle called the Microfinance Classic Fund to provide funding to early-stage microfinance institutions (MFIs). A group of investors including ICICI Bank, India’s second-largest bank with total assets of USD 79 billion, is supporting the IFMR Trust with the initiative. The fund will have both domestic and offshore fund status and it will be registered overseas to facilitate investments from international institutions.

by Elizabeth Nelson -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Legatum Invests $8.4m in Mumbai-based Microfinance Investment Consultant, Intellecap

Legatum Capital, a private firm that invests in global capital markets and social development initiatives, announced that it has invested USD 8.4 million (INR 34 crore or 340 million) in Intellecap, a company based out of Mumbai and Hyderabad, India which provides business advisory services to investors and organizations seeking both financial and social returns on investments. Among the services offered by Intellecap is Intellecash, a microfinance best practices franchise package that, according to the website, provides franchisees “with the information, systems, and processes that are required to start and manage profitable microfinance operations.” This is India’s first microfinance franchising initiative.

by Elizabeth Nelson -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Indian Financial Inclusion Firm, A.Little.World, Offers Mobile Microfinance Banking and Draws Big Investors: Enam Financial and Legatum Capital

Enam Financial, a leading Indian financial service provider, has picked up a ten percent stake in A.Little.World, a company which integrates a microfinance model with a new multi-bank payment system in order to bring mainstream banking capabilities to the large population of un-banked rural Indians. The amount of investment was not disclosed.

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL STORY: Indian Microfinance Industry to Expand Outreach, Products, and Services

The Economic Times, a division of the India Times, reports on the strength of the Indian microfinance industry, and its possible innovative role in the supply chain. Large companies like SHARE Microfin Limited, SKS, Basix and Spandana maintain vast customer networks. According to the MIX Market, the microfinance information clearinghouse, SHARE has 826,517 active borrowers, while SKS has 513,108. Basix reports 198,282 active borrowers, and Spandana, 916,261. Driven by the power of private equity investment, these companies hope to expand in the near future to over 5 million customers apiece. As reported by the Microcapital Monitor, in March of this year SKS received a private equity investment from Sequoia (a US-based private equity fund) and Unitus (a global microfinance accelerator) of USD 11.5 mn. To date, this had been the largest ever private equity investment in Indian microfinance. However, it was soon eclipsed by a USD 27 mn private investment to SHARE by Legatum (an international investment group) and Aavishkaar Goodwell (an India-based for-profit business development company). Although these insitutions aim to increase their reach in the interest of profit, this broad web of microloan consumers could be tapped for peddling insurance, money transfer, procurement and supply chain financing for agricultural and allied activities.

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by the MicroCapital Team -

Intellecap Announces Microfinance Business Plan Competition in India

In yet another innovation coming from the burgeoning microfinance sector in India, Intellecap, a microfinance consulting organization, has established an Indian Microfinance Business Plan competition. Called the Srijan Business Plan Competition, this event is being organized along with Aavishkaar Goodwell, a microfinance venture capital fund associated with Intellecap. The conference is sponsored by some of the leading providers of commercial microfinance in India – Yes Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and ICICI. For the organizers of this event, this provides an opportunity to identify business plans with promise to increase “deal flow”.
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