SBFC Finance, a lender based in the Indian city of Mumbai, recently raised INR 1.5 billion (USD 18.3 million) in a sale of stock to Amansa Capital, a Singapore-based private equity firm. The transaction came ahead of SBFC’s planned IPO, which is slated to have a total value of INR
Tag: India
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Microfinance in India: Issues, Challenges and Opportunities;” by Mohammad Abu Saleh, Zubair Ahmad
Based on a review of existing literature on microfinance in India, the authors of this study seek to: (1) analyze the size and growth of the domestic microfinance market; (2)
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Disburses $8m from Invest in Visions (IIV) to Microfinance Institutions Digamber of India, Imon of Tajikistan
Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed a loan of EUR 5 million (USD 5.5 million) to Digamber Capfin Limited, a microfinance institution (MFI) serving rural women in India, on behalf of Invest in Visions (IIV). AFI also
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Responsible Finance Forum; July 5-7, 3023; Bengaluru, India
Themed “Shaping a Responsible Digital Finance Ecosystem,” the upcoming edition of this event – the first in-person since 2019 – will focus on client protection to help “low-income and vulnerable” people reduce risks as they use financial tools. Although the detailed agenda has not yet been finalized, it is expected to include topics such as: (1) Balancing Responsible Finance Between
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Annapurna of India Borrows $10m from MicroVest to Expand Microfinance for Rural Women
MicroVest, an asset management subsidiary of US-based DAI Global, recently lent USD 10 million to Annapurna Finance, an India-based microfinance institution (MFI) that lends to groups of women for purposes such as agriculture, crafts, solar lighting and housing improvements. The MFI also lends to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Svasti of India Raises $5m via Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) Women’s Livelihood Bond Issue
India’s Svasti Microfinance recently raised USD 5 million via a bond issue by the Impact Investment Exchange (IIX), a for-profit firm in Singapore, with the goal of catalyzing income generation for low-income women. The funding is provided
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Arohan of India Raises $11m in Equity from FMO to Expand Microfinance, Including via Technology
Arohan Financial Services, an India-based microfinance institution (MFI) offering credit and insurance services to groups, individuals and other MFIs, recently accepted an equity investment in local-currency equivalent to USD 11 million from the Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO). Arohan plans to use the fresh capital
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Closes India Progress Fund with $77m to Promote Financial Inclusion, Agricultural Value Chains
The Belgium-based investment firm Incofin recently completed the final close of its India Progress Fund with a total of USD 77 million raised to support financial services providers and actors in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DEG Loans Husk Power $750k for Solar Microgrids in Nigeria, India
The German development finance institution Deutsche Investitions-und Entwicklungsgesellschaft (DEG) recently lent USD 750,000 to Husk Power Systems, an India-based supplier of small-scale electricity generation and distribution networks, to construct
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Livelihoods India Summit; January 19-20, 2023; New Delhi, India
The 13th edition of this event will address how to increase the resilience of low-income people’s livelihoods. The sessions are to cover topics such as: (1) inclusive value chains; (2) the impact of climate change on livelihoods; (3) methods for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Investors Buy $173m in Equity in Fusion Microfinance of India; IPO Allows Exits by Early Shareholders, Promoters
In the run-up to the recent IPO by India’s Fusion Microfinance, 17 investors paid approximately INR 3.3 billion (USD 40 million) for equity stakes in the microlender. The actual IPO was oversubscribed by a factor of two, as Fusion raised INR 6 billion (USD 72 million) in fresh cash, and early investors and promotors sold shares for a total of INR 5 billion (USD 61 million). Among those selling their entire holdings in the company was
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agritech SuperZop Nets $2.7m in Equity from Incofin India Progress Fund to Connect More Farmers, Retailers
Incofin Investment Management of Belgium recently invested USD 2.7 million to purchase a stake of undisclosed size in SuperZop, a technology firm that helps farmers and mills sell their whole grain, flour and other staples to restaurants and shops in India. SuperZop also packages food under its Khetika brand and provides
SPECIAL REPORT: Solar-powered Onions in Senegal, Meso-insurance Against Storms in Nicaragua, Performance-based Interest Rate Reductions for Climate-smart Lending in India
In a session on strengthening agricultural value chains today at European Microfinance Week, Daphne van Dam of Cordaid described her organization’s work to support onion farmers in Senegal. The farmers were struggling with the cost of fuel for irrigation. Cordaid was able to partner with local microfinance and solar providers to supply farmers with solar-powered irrigation systems that they could pay for on a schedule attuned to the harvest time of their crop.
Magdalena Arbelaez of Incofin described her firm’s work enabling insurance for farmers in Nicaragua. Rather than microinsurance, which would have been unworkable for many of the smallholder farmers in the region, the project extended
MICROFINANCE EVENT: 19th Inclusive Finance India Summit; January 17-18, 2023; New Delhi, India
This event is intended to advance dialogue on the challenges associated with financial inclusion. Although the agenda has not been released to date, last year’s iteration of the summit featured sessions including
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Sa-Dhan Conference on Financial Inclusion; November 14-15, 2022; New Delhi, India
This event, in its 17th edition, addresses the challenges of the financial inclusion sector, including how to enable universal access to financial services. The event will cover topics such as
MICROFINANCE EVENT: 10th Sankalp Africa Summit; March 1-2, 2023; Nairobi, Kenya
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
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sa-Dhan Members, NextGen Telesolutions to Serve Microfinance Customers in India via Feature Phones
Sa-Dhan, a network of 150 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India, recently partnered with India’s NextGen Telesolutions to deliver digital financial services to a group that is often excluded from financial services: people who have a mobile phone, but not a smartphone.
Jiji Mammen, the CEO of Sa-Dhan reportedly said, “Digitisation in collections
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