MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation Loans $1.2m to Viator of Azerbaijan, KOMIDA of Indonesia

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a foundation providing financial services to microfinance institutions (MFIs), has agreed to provide two loans to MFIs Viator of Azerbaijan and Koperasi Mitra Dhuafa (KOMIDA) of Indonesia.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: USAID, Citi to Bring Mobile Money Technology to Colombia, Haiti, Indonesia, Kenya, the Philippines

The US Agency for International Development (USAID) and Citi, a US-based bank, recently announced a partnership that will focus on increasing financial inclusion in developing countries through “mobile money” technology.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) Guarantees Half of $2.7m From Standard Chartered Bank to Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura of Indonesia

The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), which was founded in Luxembourg by French bank Credit Agricole and Grameen Trust of Bangladesh, has reported to MicroCapital that it has issued an IDR 12.5 billion (USD 1.4 million) guarantee to Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura, an Indonesian microfinance institution (MFI), via a stand-by letter of credit through Credit Agricole Corporate and Investment Banking (CA-CIB), the investment banking arm of Credit Agricole Group.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Portfolio of Commercial Indonesian Bank CIMB Niaga Triples to $132m

Commerce International Merchant Bankers Niaga (CIMB Niaga), an Indonesian commercial bank, saw its microloan portfolio increase 352 percent from IDR 272 billion (USD 29.9 million) last year to IDR 1.2 trillion (USD 132 million) as it introduced unspecified new products and additional branches in Java, Sumatra, Bali, Kalimantan and Sulawesi.

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Citi-FT Financial Education Summit 2011, Jakarta, Indonesia, November 28 – 29, 2011

Event Name: Citi-FT Financial Education Summit 2011: Empowering the Disadvantaged: Inclusive and Innovative Approaches to Financial Capability

Event Date: November 28 – November 29, 2011

Event Location: Hotel Mulia, Jakarta, Indonesia

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Indonesia Microfinance Association to Host Third Indonesia Microfinance Conference, Jakarta, Indonesia, November 30 – December 1, 2011

Event Name: 3rd Indonesia Microfinance Conference: Responsible Microfinance to Achieve Greater Financial Inclusion in Indonesia

Event Date: November 30 – December 1, 2011

Event Location: Jakarta, Indonesia

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Standard Chartered Indonesia Loans $3m to Bank Andara to Finance Lending, Technology Services for Microfinance Institutions

Standard Chartered Indonesia, a branch of the London-based bank Standard Chartered PLC, has announced that it will loan IDR 30 billion (USD 3.3 million) to Bank Andara, an Indonesian wholesale lender to microfinance institutions (MFIs), to expand its services to MFIs in Indonesia [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Loans $3m to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL) of Cambodia, Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura of Indonesia

responsAbility Social Investments AG, a Swiss investment company that manages four microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs), recently reported to MicroCapital that it has made debt investment totaling the equivalent of USD 3 million in microfinance institutions Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL) of Cambodia and Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura of Indonesia [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citi, OPIC Loan $20m to Microfinance Program “Danamon Simpan Pinjam” of Indonesia’s Bank Danamon

Citi Indonesia, the Indonesian arm of the global financial services company, and Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a development finance institution of the US government, recently announced a USD 20 million term loan to fund a microfinance program of Bank Danamon of Indonesia named “Danamon Simpan Pinjam”.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Editorial Touts Financial Literacy, Microsavings to Increase Financial Inclusion in Indonesia

A recent editorial in The Jakarta Post, a newspaper in Indonesia, examines the issue of access to financial services in Indonesia and highlights financial literacy as an important element in increasing financial inclusion [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mobile Finance Platform Fundamo, Bank Andara Aim to Extend Access to Financial Services to 40m in Indonesia

Mobile finance platform vendor Fundamo is aspiring to extend financial services to 40 million Indonesians in poor regions as part of a new partnership with Indonesia’s Bank Andara, a wholesale lender to microfinance institutions (MFIs).

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund (rAGMF) Makes Loans Totaling $2.8m to Hattha Kaksekar Limited (HKL), Thaneakea Phum Limited (TPC) of Cambodia and Koperasi Mitra Dhuafa (Komida), Tanaoba Lais Manekat Foundation (TLM) of Indonesia

responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund (rAGMF), a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) managed by responsAbility Social Investments AG (responsAbility), recently reported to MicroCapital that it has loaned the equivalent of USD 2.8 million to four microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia and Indonesia. responsAbility is an investment company based in Switzerland that invests in MFIs and other MIVs.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: The Wall Street Journal Reports on Expansion of Indonesian Banks into Microfinance Sector, $30b in Microloans Are Distributed in 5 Years

US-based newspaper The Wall Street Journal recently reported that Indonesian banks are quickly expanding into the country’s microfinance market [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indonesia’s Commercial Bank Tabungan Pensiunan Nasional (BTPN) Expanding Customized Microfinance Services

The Economist, a UK-based weekly news publication, recently commented on the growth of the microfinance activities of Bank Tabungan Pensiunan Nasional (BTPN), an Indonesian commercial bank. According to The Economist, BTPN’s microfinance portfolio growth is fueled by the informal economy on the populous island of Java including market traders, repair shops and household producers. BTPN equips staff with portable devices to scan fingerprints and bank cards to serve illiterate customers and also facilitate real-time information exchange between its branches and head office. BTPN also offers free financial skills training courses to its microborrowers.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Building Materials Supplier Holcim, Zurich Financial Team Up to Offer Home Microinsurance in Indonesia

Holcim Limited, a Swiss building materials supplier, and Zurich Financial Services, an insurance-oriented financial services provider headquartered in Switzerland, recently joined forces to offer home microinsurance to low-income people in Indonesia.