MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Creation Investments Social Ventures Fund IV Closes with $184m to Invest in Microfinance, SME Finance

US-based Creation Investments Capital Management LLC recently met its goal of securing commitments totaling USD 184 million for its Social Ventures Fund IV. The investors were a mix of “existing and new investors including corporate pension plans, funds of funds, insurance companies, endowments and foundations, public pension funds, and family offices.”

With approximately USD 700 million in assets under management as of September 2019, Creation Investments seeks to “serve the

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BIO Loans $7m to Banco VisionFund Ecuador for Microfinance

Banco VisionFund Ecuador (BVE), a for-profit microfinance institution and member of VisionFund International, recently borrowed USD 7 million from the government-owned Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries, which is also known by its Dutch acronym BIO. The funding is intended to grow BVE’s portfolio, including in underserved areas.

BVE was formed in 2016 by the transformation of the nonprofit

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EFSE Loans $33m to Erste Bank Montenegro for Housing Microfinance

The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a microfinance investment vehicle domiciled in Luxembourg, recently announced it has lent EUR 30 million (USD 33 million) to Erste Bank Montenegro, a commercial banking member of the Austria-based Erste Group, to expand housing finance in Montenegro. Erste Bank Montenegro CEO Aleksa Lukic commented

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest in Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Lends $21.4m to Microfinance Institutions in Bolivia, Cambodia, Kosovo, Moldova, Tajikistan – Including $11.1m to Eskhata Bank

Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV) recently loaned EUR 10 million (USD 11.1 million) to Eskhata Bank, a provider of microfinance and traditional financial services in Tajikistan, in an effort to stimulate economic development in the country, including in rural areas. The investment is one of a group of loans totaling

SPECIAL REPORT: SAM Facilitates Long-term Relationship Between Agora Microfinance Zambia, Triple Jump

Team members of Triple Jump, an SAM 2019impact-focused asset manager with offices in the Netherlands and Kenya, and Agora Microfinance Zambia (AMZ), a microfinance institution dedicated to serving low-income, rural households in Zambia, met for the first time at the Investors’ Fair at the 2017 SAM conference in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. During a speed-dating session, Triple Jump found AMZ to be an interesting prospect because of its

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Green for Growth Fund (GGF) Loans $1.7m to Microfinance Institution Alter Modus to Finance Energy Efficiency in Montenegro

Alter Modus, a microlender in Montenegro, recently agreed to borrow EUR 1.5 million (USD 1.67 million) from the Green for Growth Fund (GGF), a public-private partnership based in Luxembourg, in order to boost Montenegro’s energy efficiency (EE) finance market. GGF also aims to boost Alter Modus’ expertise in EE lending by providing the microfinance institution with

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MFIs in 14 Countries Borrow $45m from CQ Dual Return Vision Microfinance Funds

During June and July, 18 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in 14 countries closed on new loans totaling the equivalent of USD 45 million from the Dual Return Vision Microfinance Funds, which are managed by C-Quadrat Asset Management. C-Quadrat, a member of Austria-based CQ Investment Group, tells MicroCapital that the MFIs have “a strong focus on

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution Juhudi Kilimo of Kenya Sells Equity Stake to Incofin CVSO for $2.4m

Juhudi Kilimo, a for-profit microfinance institution (MFI) in Kenya, recently sold an ownership stake of unspecified size for EUR 2.2 million (USD 2.4 million) to Incofin CVSO, a cooperative fund managed by Belgium-based Incofin Investment Management. Juhudi, which mainly serves rural areas, intends to use the new funding to

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Schroders Buying Controlling Stake in Microfinance Investor BlueOrchard

Schroders, a UK-based asset manager with GBP 444 billion (USD 538 billion) in assets under management, recently agreed to acquire a majority holding in BlueOrchard Finance, a Switzerland-based firm with USD 3.5 billion in

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Securitizes $175m for 26 Microfinance Institutions, SME Lenders from Investors Including Alecta, Calvert, OPIC

A Switzerland-based “impact asset manager,” responsAbility Investments, recently securitized USD 175 million for lending to 26 funders of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). The three-year securitization offers listed bonds at senior and mezzanine levels with unspecified “commercial” fixed rates of return, as well as a junior level with

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution VisionFund, UK Department for International Development (DFID) to Expand Mobile Banking in Rural Myanmar

VisionFund Myanmar, a microfinance institution (MFI) operating within the nonprofit VisionFund International, is partnering with the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) on a USD 1.7 million project to expand mobile banking in Myanmar. The effort is intended to provide

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $225m to Banco Agromercantil de Guatemala (BAM) to Expand Lending for Housing; Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently disbursed a loan of USD 225 million to Banco Agromercantil de Guatemala (BAM), a subsidiary of Colombia-based Grupo Bancolombia. The loan is for on-lending by BAM for housing as well as

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sanad Fund for MSME Launches Equity Sub-Fund II with $23m from BMZ, EU to Invest in Financial Inclusion, Job Creation in Middle East, North Africa

The Sanad Fund for MSME, a Luxembourg-domiciled investor in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), recently launched its Equity Sub-Fund (ESF) II, to invest in financial intermediaries with the aim of increasing financial inclusion and job creation in the Middle East and North Africa. The sub-fund’s mandate includes

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $15m in Local Currency to Stanbic Bank Zambia to Expand Financing to Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs)

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently announced that it has disbursed a loan of ZMK 200 million (USD 15 million) to Stanbic Bank Zambia, a subsidiary of South Africa’s Standard Bank Group. Commenting on the transaction, Stanbic Bank Zambia CEO Leina Gabaraane said

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE) Loans $2.6m in Local Currency to VisionFund Microfinance Institution SEF International to Support Rural MSEs in Armenia

The European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a microfinance investment vehicle domiciled in Luxembourg, recently announced that it has lent local currency approximately equivalent to USD 2.58 million to SEF International, a microfinance institution (MFI) in Armenia, to finance micro- and small enterprises (MSEs) in rural areas. Commenting on the transaction, SEF CEO Garegin Gevorgyan said

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Invest in Visions’ IIV Mikrofinanzfonds Lends $2m to Kosovo Enterprise Program (KEP) Trust for Microfinance Lending

Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV) recently announced that it has disbursed a loan of EUR 2 million (USD 2.26 million) to the Kosovo Enterprise Program (KEP) Trust from IIV Mikrofinanzfonds, a microfinance investment vehicle that is active in developing countries. During June 2019, IIV also invested in

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: PBU Invests $15m in Nordic Microfinance Initiative’s NMI Fund IV to Invest in Women in Africa, Asia

Paedagogernes Pension (PBU), Denmark’s Pension Fund of Early Childhood Teachers, recently invested approximately USD 15 million, denominated in kroner, in NMI Fund IV, which is managed by the Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI), a Norway-based public-private partnership that supports microfinance institutions in developing countries.

The goal of the investment is

SPECIAL REPORT: BNP Paribas to Prep MFIs to Win Over Investors at SAM

BNP Paribas is SAM 2019celebrating the 30th anniversary of its microfinance activity this year. The bank’s contribution to the sector has evolved greatly over this time, as has the microfinance ecosystem itself. While the need for financial inclusion continues to be critical, BNP Paribas is proud of its track record of support for MFIs. After 30 years, the bank continues to finance more than 30 MFIs directly, with close to EUR 300 million (USD 340 million) deployed.

We are celebrating this landmark in several parts of the world, and it quickly became obvious that the SAM would be the best event to partner with in showcasing our activities in Africa.

During our long history, we often have been disappointed to