MicroVest, a debt-focused asset manager owned by US-based DAI Global, recently agreed to lend USD 2 million to Ecuador’s Fundacion Espoir, an NGO providing microcredit, insurance and financial education. The goal is to support Fundacion Espoir in assisting women-led micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in recovering from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and
Tag: Deals
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bankingly of Uruguay Raises $11m in Equity Round Led by Dalus Capital to Help Financial Institutions Boost Digital Inclusion in Africa, Asia, Latin America
Uruguay’s Bankingly recently secured an investment package totalling USD 11 million, which it plans to use to expand in Latin America and Africa as well as enter Southeast Asia. Bankingly provides financial institutions with software-as-a-service (SaaS) that helps them serve customers via websites, mobile apps, chatbots and other tools, thus “facilitating the financial inclusion of millions of people…”. Bankingly CEO and Founder, Martin Naor, expressed the hope that
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Executes IIF Equity Buy into Forte Insurance to Boost Agricultural Microinsurance in Cambodia
Switzerland’s BlueOrchard Finance recently disbursed an equity placement of undisclosed size from the InsuResilience Investment Fund (IIF), a Luxembourg-domiciled public-private partnership, for IIF to buy a minority stake in Cambodia’s Forte Insurance Group. BlueOrchard’s investment director for the continent, Thibaud Ponchon, expressed confidence that the placement will “drive the penetration of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kinara Capital Raises $50m in Equity from Nuveen, ASN Microkredietfonds to Boost Lending to MSMEs in India
India’s Kinara Capital recently raised INR 3.8 billion (USD 50 million) in equity from the Global Impact Fund of US-based Nuveen, which led the investment round, and ASN Microkredietfonds, which is advised by the Netherlands’ Triple Jump, to boost Kinara’s lending to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in India. According to Kinara Founder and CEO Hardika Shah
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Louis Dreyfus Company Borrowing $100m from ADB to On-lend to Small-scale Farmers to Boost Climate Resilience, COVID-19 Recovery
The Asian Development Bank (ADB), a multilateral institution based in the Philippines, recently agreed to lend USD 100 million to Louis Dreyfus Company (LDC), a Netherlands-based firm active in agriculture, food processing and shipping. LDC plans to use the funds to finance “coffee, cotton and rice inventories” for 50,000 smallholder farmers who supply the firm’s operations in India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Thailand and Vietnam. Among the goals of the project are to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ADA to Promote Financial Inclusion in Niger via Improved Product Design, Supervision, Funding Framework
Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA), an NGO based in Luxembourg that supports microfinance institutions (MFIs) in low- and middle-income countries, recently entered into a contract with Luxembourg’s Directorate of Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs with the goal of creating jobs and otherwise reducing
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Impact Asset Management Loans $11m from Dual Return Microfinance Funds to MFIs in East Timor, Ecuador, Kosovo, Nicaragua
Impact Asset Management (I-AM), a member of the Austria-based C-Quadrat Investment Group, recently disbursed loans from Vision Microfinance and Vision Microfinance Local Currency, the two sub-funds of the Dual Return Fund family, that total the equivalent of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: SIG Venture Capital Leads $210m Investment in Fintech Voyager of the Philippines
Voyager Innovations, a Philippine provider of digital financial services tools such as Fintq, PayMaya and Smart Padala, recently secured an investment package totaling USD 210 million. The fresh capital is slated for developing the company’s “digital banking venture and other services like cryptocurrency and micro-investments.” Voyager was established in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Khan Bank Borrows $6m from MicroVest for SMEs in Mongolia
MicroVest, a debt-focused asset manager owned by US-based DAI Global, recently agreed to lend USD 6 million to Khan Bank, which serves individuals and companies of all sizes in Mongolia. The goal of the loan is to boost
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bix, FMO Lending $10m to C-Quest Capital to Expand Usage of Clean Cookstoves in Sub-Saharan Africa
Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), a Dutch public-private partnership, is lending USD 6.4 million to C-Quest Capital, a US-based investor in projects that reduce the environmental impacts of energy production and usage in low- and middle-income countries. At the same time, Bix Capital, a Dutch provider of debt financing to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to boost
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Invest, Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB) Bank Strike $70m Deal to Boost SME Lending, Social Performance, Human Resources, Environmental Tracking
IDB Invest, a member of the US-based Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently formed a partnership with Jamaica Money Market Brokers (JMMB) Bank whereby JMMB Bank will receive from IDB Invest: (1) support “on the development and implementation of an environmental and social management system;” (2) capacity building services related to human resources; (3) a five-year loan of USD 35 million earmarked for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs); and (4) the arrangement of an additional lending package of USD 35 million funded by third-party banks. The funding will increase “the mat
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $4m to ProCredit Bank Skopje to Boost SMEs’ Quality Standards, Residential Energy Efficiency in North Macedonia
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral institution, recently provided two loans to ProCredit Bank Skopje, which operates in North Macedonia and is owned by Germany-based ProCredit Holding. One loan, in the amount of EUR 1 million (USD 1.2 million),
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Regional MSME Investment Fund for Sub-Saharan Africa (REGMIFA) Raises $24m from BMZ via KfW
The German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, which is also known by its German acronym BMZ, recently invested EUR 20 million (USD 24.3 million) in the Regional MSME Investment Fund for Sub-Saharan Africa (REGMIFA), which supports micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in 19 countries. The investment, which BMZ issued through Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau (KfW), a government-backed development bank in Germany, is earmarked for the nine of REGMIFA’s target countries that participate in the G20 Compact with Africa. A total of 12 African countries are active in the Compact with
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Rent-to-Own Car Financier Planet42 of South Africa Secures Final Tranche of $13m Debt, Equity Package
Planet42, a car financier in South Africa, recently secured the closing portion of a funding package arranged by Verdant Capital, an African financial advisory firm, totaling USD 13 million in debt and equity. The names of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EIB Loans $100m to COFIDE of Peru to Support Energy Efficiency, Renewables, SMEs
The European Investment Bank (EIB), the long-term lending institution of the EU, recently loaned USD 100 million to Corporación Financiera de Desarrollo (COFIDE), a development bank owned by the Peruvian government, to provide support to small businesses and projects to reduce the climate impacts of energy usage. This includes investments
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Loans $25m to Aklease to Support Renewable Energy in Turkey
The Netherlands Development Finance Company, a public-private partnership also known by its Dutch acronym FMO, recently loaned USD 25 million to Aklease, a leasing subsidiary of Turkish bank Akbank, to be used for solar energy projects. Through this loan, Aklease aims to increase the “green” portion
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest In Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Lends $3m to Armeconom Bank to Support Microfinance in Armenia
Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV) recently announced that it has loaned USD 3 million to Armeconom Bank of Armenia from IIV Mikrofinanzfonds, a microfinance investment vehicle that lends to financial institutions in developing countries. Launched in 1991, Armeconom offers loans, credit lines, deposit services, payment cards, transfers and other services to individuals and businesses. It accepts deposits in four currencies, with rates ranging from 0.2 percent to 10 percent per year. Its lending products include
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $100m to Equity Bank to Support SMEs, Renewable Energy in Kenya
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently loaned KES 10 billion (USD 100 million) to the Kenyan member of the Equity Bank Group, a provider of microfinance and conventional financial services in six countries, to: (1) increase its lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs); (2) enhance its regulatory capital; and (3) finance renewable energy projects. IFC also will provide Equity Bank Kenya with advisory support related to the subordinated loan, the cost of which has not been revealed. The IFC-funded loans will range in size from KES 1 million (USD 10,000) to KES 200 million (USD 2 million) to benefit firms that fit at least one of the following criteria: