This event will focus on mechanisms through which entrepreneurial partnerships can solve global issues. The agenda offers time for one-on-one meetings plus 40 group sessions covering topics such as
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MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Zubaida Bai Is New CEO of Grameen Foundation
Zubaida Bai has been selected to lead the Grameen Foundation, a US-based NGO that works to reduce poverty in Africa and Asia via “community agents,” who support people – especially women – in learning how to use digital financial services and farm in a “climate-smart” manner. Ms Bai is the founder of Ayzh, a provider of maternal and
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “A Brief Introduction to WASH for Impact Investors;” by Joana Afonso, Sachin Kumar, Alvaro Ma; Published by e-MFP, Aqua for All
This report on funding water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) cites the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 6 – Clean Water and Sanitation – as well as data indicating 3.6 billion people worldwide have limited access to
SPECIAL REPORT: Agents for Impact Sustainability Alignment Rating (AFISAR©): Applying a Gender-smart Approach in the Microfinance Sector
UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, “Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls,” is not only a standalone goal but is inextricably linked to the other SDGs. Though moving toward gender equality has long been associated with achieving social or political goals, its proven economic benefits remain under-appreciated. According to the World Bank’s 2021 Global Findex Database, more than 1 billion women worldwide still lack access to the financial system. In fact, women make up the largest unbanked population in the world, with more than 70 percent of woman-owned small and medium-sized enterprises estimated to have inadequate or no access to financial services. The financial gap just for women-owned formal small businesses is estimated to be USD 300 billion.
In the absence of financial tools, women face difficulty generating income, boosting savings, growing businesses and improving the living conditions of their families. If the ambitious targets set within the SDGs are to be achieved, then a concerted effort is required to
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) Investor Forum; October 12-13, 2022; the Hague, the Netherlands
The goal of this event is to connect the various elements of “the impact ecosystem” to expand the impact investing market, thus boosting efforts to create “positive, measurable social and environmental impact” alongside financial returns. The agenda includes sessions
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Banking in Layers: Five Cases to Illustrate How the Market Structure for Financial Services is Evolving;” by Aiaze Mitha, Faith Biegon, Peter Zetterli; Published by CGAP
This paper cites several financial service providers (FSPs) in emerging markets in exploring how recent advancements in digital technology have enabled new business models, transforming the market for financial services. The authors argue that these FSPs have deconstructed the financial services market into separate modules, allowing these modules to be reassembled in innovative ways. These modules include:
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Opportunity International Strengthening Financial, Training Technology in Lower-income Countries in Partnership with Krach Family Foundation, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy
Opportunity International, a US-based NGO, recently moved to strengthen the technology it uses to provide microfinance and other services in 30 countries. The goal is to help people with low incomes “make their businesses more scalable and efficient” through better access to market information, financial education, business training and financial services. These services can take the form of smartphone apps, cloud services, digital forms of identification and others. An element of achieving these goals is to boost users’ – and potential users’ – confidence in
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Agri-SME Finance: Navigating Volatility in the Wake of the War in Ukraine;” Published by IFAD, IFC, SAFIN
The authors describe the recent turmoil in global food markets and the resulting “worst food crisis in generations.” The war in Ukraine has had a major impact on markets in Russia and Ukraine, which together previously produced a quarter of the wheat and most of the sunflower oil sold worldwide. Meanwhile, increases in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Loans $1m to VisionFund Senegal for Microfinance Lending
The Luxembourg-based Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation recently announced a local-currency loan worth the equivalent of EUR 1 million (USD 1 million) to VisionFund Senegal, which is controlled by the US-based, Christian nonprofit World Vision International. VisionFund Senegal provides
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Loans $3.1m to Microfinance Institution Baobab Burkina Faso
The unit of France-based Baobab Group that operates in Burkina Faso has accepted a local-currency loan equal to EUR 3.1 million (USD 3.1 million) from the Luxembourg-based Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation. Baobab Group offers microbanking, solar-powered devices and tablets in eight African countries as well as China. Its outstanding loans total
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “The Global Findex Database: Financial Inclusion, Digital Payments and Resilience in the Age of COVID-19;” by Asli Demirguc-Kunt, Leora Klapper, Dorothe Singer, Saniya Ansar
This report presents findings from a World Bank survey of approximately 125,000 adults in 123 emerging markets regarding financial inclusion. The survey was conducted during 2021 and follows analogous surveys performed in 2011, 2014 and 2017.
Account ownership among respondents in all regions has been growing rapidly, from 51 percent in 2011 to
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “60 Decibels Microfinance Index,” by Sasha Dichter, Devin Olmack, Ellie Rodgers, Akanksha Singh
Using data from approximately 18,000 beneficiaries of 72 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in 41 countries, the authors of this report rank the participating MFIs based on social impact. The researchers collected the data via surveys administered to 250 randomly selected clients for each MFI. The surveys covered 18 indicators, such as
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Airtel Africa Establishes Smartcash Payment Service Bank to Offer Payments, Remittances, Deposit to Individuals, Enterprises in Nigeria
Airtel Africa, a UK-based mobile money company active in Africa, recently launched Smartcash Payment Service Bank (PSB), to expand the range of financial services it offers in Nigeria. The move follows Airtel Africa having received a “super-agent” licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria, enabling the company to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: LOLC Cambodia Borrows $7m from Nordic Microfinance Initiative to Expand Financial Access in Rural Cambodia
The Norway-based Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI) recently announced a subordinated loan of USD 7 million to Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC) Cambodia, a member of the Sri Lanka-based LOLC Group, to expand lending and leasing services for individuals with low incomes who live in rural areas. The deal follows
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BII Lending $20m to Moove, Financier of Ride-hailing, Delivery Vehicles in Africa
British International Investment (BII), the UK government’s development finance institution, recently announced a four-year structured debt package of USD 20 million for Moove, a Nigeria-based financial technology (fintech) firm that helps drivers in Africa acquire motorcycles, cars and trucks to work for passenger and delivery driving services. Moove plans to use the proceeds to buy fuel-efficient cars for drivers in Nigeria to acquire through payments made over periods of up to four years. Moove’s vehicle financing packages include
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Fintech Sava Raises $1.8m in Equity to Launch Spending Management Platform in South Africa
Sava, a firm in South Africa, recently raised USD 1.8 million in “pre-seed funding” for its digital platform focused on “expenditure management and reconciliations” for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Africa. The company plans to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CAURIE-MF Borrows $2.6m from Huruma Fund to Expand Agricultural Microfinance in Senegal
Spain’s Gawa Capital, the manager of the public-private partnership Huruma Fund, recently disbursed a loan of EUR 2.5 million (USD 2.6 million) from the fund to Coopérative Autonome pour le Renforcement des Initiatives Économiques par la Micro finance (CAURIE-MF), a microfinance institution in Senegal, with the objective of creating employment opportunities by expanding
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Invests $6m in Peer-to-peer Lender Amartha from Inclusive Finance Fund, Microfinance Enhancement Facility (MEF) to Increase Group Lending to Female Entrepreneurs in Rural Indonesia
Amartha, a firm offering peer-to-peer lending and other services in Indonesia, recently gained access to USD 6 million in debt financing from the Belgian impact investing firm Incofin Investment Management in an attempt to boost access to financial services for women entrepreneurs in rural Indonesia. Two thirds of the total invested comes from the Microfinance Enhancement Facility (MEF), and the remainder is sourced from