MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Loans $93m to Mahindra Finance for Microloans Targeting Farmers, SMEs, Women in India

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a unit of the World Bank Group, recently loaned INR 6.4 billion (USD 93 million) to Mahindra & Mahindra Financial Services Limited (Mahindra Finance), a non-banking financial company owned by the India-based Mahindra Group. Mahindra Finance plans to use the funding to expand its lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $59m to Qatar National Bank (QNB) Tunisia for Small, Medium-sized Enterprise (SME) Financing

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral institution, recently loaned EUR 50 million (USD 59 million) to Qatar National Bank (QNB) Tunisia, a subsidiary of the Qatar-based QNB Group. QNB Tunisia will use the proceeds from the loan to on-lend to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Tunisia. This is the first transaction between EBRD and QNB Tunisia.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Base of Pyramid Asia (BOPA) Invests $2.5m in Equity in Indian Microfinance Institution (MFI) Sambandh Finserve

Base of Pyramid Asia (BOPA) Private Limited, a microfinance investment firm in Singapore, recently invested USD 2.5 million to buy a stake of undisclosed size in Sambandh Finserve Private Limited, an Indian microfinance institution that is organized as a non-banking financial company.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) Loans $7m to Trustbank of Uzbekistan to Launch Shariah-compliant Services for Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD), a unit of the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) Group, recently loaned USD 7 million to Private Joint Stock Trustbank, a commercial bank in Uzbekistan, for it to roll out Shariah-compliant financial products

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) Supports $100m IFC Loan to TienPhong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPBank) to Boost Digital Financial Services in Vietnam

With funds from the government-backed Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Limited (ICBC) and other sources, the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) recently loaned USD 100 million to TienPhong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPBank) of Vietnam. TPBank plans to use the proceeds of the five-year loan to expand its lending via its website and mobile app.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oman India Joint Investment Fund (OIJIF) Buys $23m Equity Stake in India’s Annapurna Microfinance

The Oman India Joint Investment Fund (OIJIF), a private equity investor associated with the governments of India and Oman, recently placed an equity investment of INR 1.6 billion (USD 23 million) in Annapurna Microfinance Private Limited, a non-deposit-taking microfinance institution (MFI)

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Loans $33m in Local Currency to Exim Bank Tanzania for Micro-, Small, Medium-sized Enterprise (MSME) Financing

The Netherlands Development Finance Company, a public-private bank also known by its Dutch acronym FMO, recently loaned TZS 75 billion (USD 33 million) to Exim Bank Tanzania Limited, a commercial bank active in Tanzania, Comoros, Djibouti and Uganda. The bank has allocated the funds for lending to micro-,

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility-managed Private Equity Vehicle Acquires 51% Stake in Bank Lviv, Lender to SMEs, Agricultural Firms in the Ukraine

A private equity investment vehicle managed by responsAbility Investments AG, a Switzerland-based asset manager specializing in impact investments in developing countries, recently paid an undisclosed sum to buy a 51-percent

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: India’s RBL Bank Completes Ownership of Microfinance Institution (MFI) Swadhaar Finserve with Equity Purchases from Accion, Individual Investors

RBL Bank Limited, an Indian commercial bank formerly known as Ratnakar Bank Limited (RBL), recently bought out the other owners of Swadhaar Finserve Private Limited (SFPL), a microfinance institution (MFI) providing loan, deposit and insurance services to low-income households as well as micro-, small

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Risk Management in Microfinance (RIM) Merging with Professional Risk Managers’ International Association (PRMIA) to Expand Training Opportunities, Certifications for Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)

Risk Management in Microfinance (RIM), a Luxembourg-based nonprofit organization that offers guidelines, consulting and training for microfinance professionals on risk, and the Professional Risk Managers’ International Association (PRMIA),

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Woori Bank of South Korea Acquires VisionFund Cambodia from Microfinance Subsidiary of US-based World Vision

VisionFund International, a UK-based NGO that offers microfinance services for World Vision, a US-based Christian relief and development organization, recently sold VisionFund Cambodia, a microfinance institution (MFI) serving rural

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Holding Company ASA International to Trade on London Stock Exchange, Citigroup Coordinating IPO

ASA International, a microfinance holding company that owns and operates 12 microfinance institutions in Asia and Africa, is scheduled to become a Premium Listed company on the London Stock Exchange on July 13. The firm, which has offices in Bangladesh and the Netherlands, was co-founded by Md Shafiqual Haque Choudhury, the founder and President of ASA. ASA,

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: OPIC Loans $143m to CrediQ for SME Vehicle Loans, Leases in Costa Rica, El Salvador

The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), an agency of the US government that seeks to facilitate investment by US-based firms in developing countries, recently loaned USD 143 million to CrediQ Inversiones of Costa Rica and CrediQ El Salvador, two vehicle financing providers owned

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Invest Places $10m in Bozano Growth Capital Fund to Take Equity Positions in Mid-sized Healthcare Firms in Brazil

IDB Invest, the private sector arm of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently executed an equity investment of USD 10 million in Bozano Investimentos, a Brazil-based private equity and asset

MICROFINANCE EVENT: TBLI Conference Nordic 2018; November 8 – 9, 2018; Stockholm, Sweden

As in previous editions in several other countries, the next TBLI Conference will consider triple bottom line investing (TBLI) – investing that “benefits investor, environment, and society” – including environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing. Sessions will address the

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI) Raises $105m from DNB, Ferd, IFU, KLP, Norfund for Fund IV for MFIs in Africa, Asia

The Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI), a Norway-based public-private partnership that supports microfinance institutions (MFIs) in developing countries, recently debuted its fourth fund with a total of USD 105 million in commitments from the following organizations: Norway’s Den Norske Bank;

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: OPIC Loans $5m in Local Currency to Grameen Impact Investments India for SMEs

The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), an agency of the US government that seeks to facilitate investment by US-based firms in developing countries, recently loaned INR 355 million (USD 5 million) to Grameen Impact Investments India (GIII), a unit of Grameen Capital India (GCI) that

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Loans $10m to Factotal for SME Leasing, Factoring, Vendor Finance in Chile, Peru

IDB Invest, the private sector arm of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently disbursed a four-year loan of USD 10 million to Factotal SA, a Chile-based provider of leasing, factoring and vendor-finance services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The deal, which is the fourth between the parties, is