Calvert Impact Capital, a US-based NGO, recently opened a five-year credit line of USD 15 million for FINCA Impact Finance to use in support of its 20 microfinance institutions in Africa, the Americas and Eurasia. The funding is available for on-lending to micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) as well as for
Category: Eastern Europe and Central Asia
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlackRock Launches $20m Global Impact Fund Investing in Companies Working Toward UN Sustainable Development Goals
BlackRock, an investment management firm based in the US city of New York, recently launched its Global Impact Fund with USD 20 million in assets. The goal of the fund is to generate returns through long-term capital growth as well as income. BlackRock will invest at least
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Enda Tamweel, FMO Ink $65m Syndicated Loan for Education, Enterprise, Housing Microfinance in Tunisia with Support from TCX, AATIF, ASN, Microbuild, BlueOrchard
Enda Tamweel, a Tunisian microfinance institution, and the Netherlands Development Finance Company, which is also known by its Dutch acronym FMO, recently finalized a syndicated loan agreement denominated in Tunisian dinars equivalent to EUR 60 million (USD 65 million). Two thirds of the funding will flow to Enda via
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFIs in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, India, Panama, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan Refinance $38m in Microloans via Sales to IIV Mikrofinanzfonds
Microfinance institutions (MFIs) in six countries recently sold non-securitized loan claims for USD 7.8 million-plus EUR 28 million (USD 30.4 million) to IIV Mikrofinanzfonds, a fund managed by Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV). While the MFIs have not been named, they are located in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Lending $8.1m to Bank Lviv for SMEs in Ukraine
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral investor, recently agreed to provide a four-year loan in local currency equivalent to USD 8.1 million to Bank Lviv, a commercial bank in Ukraine, for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Ashot Abrahamyan, the CEO of Bank Lviv, explains that his institution is
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Loans $1.65m to Kreditimi Rural i Kosoves (KRK) for Microfinance in Kosovo
Kreditimi Rural i Kosoves (KRK), a microlender in Kosovo, recently borrowed EUR 1.5 million (USD 1.65 million)
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Providers Report Wide Range of COVID-19 Effects via Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Survey
From March 11 to March 19, the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg, collected observations from 56 microfinance institutions (MFIs) regarding the effects of COVID-19. Markets are closed, putting traders out of work; and group borrowers’ meetings are canceled. While these are replaced in some instances with door-to-door transactions, other MFIs are reducing in-person transactions to minimize virus transmission. Remittance inflows are down. Tourism enterprises are being asked to return deposits for canceled
MEDIA OF THE MONTH: How to Cope With the Effects of the Pandemic on your Business: Examples from the Field, a Webinar from MFC
This webinar is full of ideas to help mange the impacts of CIVOD-19. The presenters are Laure Coussirat-Coustère of Adie, Roxane Lemercier of microStart, Mirjana Panin of Opportunity Bank Serbia and Kinga Dabrowska of the Microfinance Centre.
This post is part of a monthly series from MicroCapital pointing you to great media on microfinance and other forms of impact investing. Enjoy!
Do you know that MicroCapital publishes the MicroCapital Monitor newspaper each month? Find out more at http://www.microcapital.org/products-page/.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest in Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Refinances $26m in Microloans for MFIs in Cambodia, Ecuador, Georgia
During February 2020, IIV Mikrofinanzfonds, a fund managed by Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV), refinanced microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Ecuador, Georgia and Cambodia by purchasing non-securitized loan claims totaling USD 26 million. While the names of the other MFIs remain confidential,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Boosts COVID-19 Response to $8b for Working Capital, Risk-sharing, Trade Finance, “Real Sector” Finance Worldwide; Including $294m Deployed to Target SMEs in Vietnam
The World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) recently increased to USD 8 billion its financial commitment to counter the effects of COVID-19. David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, said, “It’s essential that we shorten the time to recovery.” He added, “Support operations are already underway, and the expanding funding tools…will help sustain economies, companies and jobs.”
The funding package is divided into four categories, with USD 2 billion allocated each to: (1) cash for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $2.2m to NLB Banka Podgorica for Women-led SMEs in Montenegro
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral investor, recently agreed to loan EUR 2 million (USD 2.18 million) to NLB Banka Podgorica, a Montenegro-based bank named for its Slovenian affiliate Nova Ljubljanska Banka (NLB). As part of EBRD’s Women in Business Programme, the loan is to be used to support
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Commits $1.1b as “First Step” in Response to Coronavirus; Targets Include SMEs, Women-owned businesses
The UK-based multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently allocated EUR 1 billion (USD 1.1 billion) to provide “immediate support” as a “first step” to addressing disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The targets include boosting trade finance, particularly as it can assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and providing crisis-management advice to SMEs, especially those led by women. For borrowers experiencing difficulty with repayment, EBRD will
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Lending $8.5m to Minsk Transit Bank (MTBank) for Microfinance, SME Finance in Belarus
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral institution, is lending BYB 20 million (USD 8.5 million) to Minsk Transit Bank (MTBank), Belarus’s “largest independent private bank,” for on-lending to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The loan is denominated in local-currency to off-load the foreign-exchange risk that Belarusian businesses often take on when borrowing from foreign banks. The funding will also increase the time
SPECIAL REPORT: Highlights of European Microfinance Week 2019
From 
the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP): European Microfinance Week 2019 gathered 450 leading experts from 62 countries to showcase the most exciting innovations advancing sustainable and responsible financial
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $5.6m to Sparkasse Bank Makedonija for Housing, Energy-efficiency in North Macedonia
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral institution, recently issued two loans to Sparkasse Bank Makedonija, a unit of Austrian savings bank Steiermärkische Sparkasse, to promote investment in privately owned buildings in North Macedonia. The larger loan is in the amount of EUR 3 million (USD 3.4 million) and is to be used for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Banca Transilvania Acquiring Microinvest, Microfinance Institution in Moldova
Pending government approval, Romania’s Banca Transilvania (BT) Financial Group is slated to acquire 100 percent of the equity in Microinvest, a Moldovan microfinance institution, for an undisclosed price. The MFI is being sold by a group of European and US-based entities, led by the
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest In Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Refinances Alliance Myanmar with $3m Loan for Rural Microfinance
Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV) recently disbursed a loan of USD 3 million from its fund IIV Mikrofinanzfonds to Alliance Myanmar, a microfinance institution in Myanmar. Alliance Myanmar is using the funds to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Lends $16m to BT Mic for MSEs in Romania, With a Focus on Female-owned Enterprises
The World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) recently loaned USD 16 million to BT Mic, a lender to small businesses that is controlled by Romania’s Transilvania Bank Group. The funding is intended to