“Symbiotics 2015 Microfinance Investment Vehicles (MIV) Survey Report: Market Data and Peer Group Analysis;” published by the Symbiotics Group; 2015; 45 pages; available at http://www.syminvest.com/papers/ed4710d3-cd20-4366-ad75-095f2b3adffe
Symbiotics, a Switzerland-based investment company that is “specialized in emerging, sustainable and inclusive finance,” recently published its ninth annual microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs) survey based on indicators reported by MIVs for 2014.
Event Name: European Microfinance Week 2015
Event Dates: November 18-20, 2015
Event Location: Abbaye de Neumunster, Luxembourg
Orix Corporation, a financial services provider based in Tokyo, Japan, recently announced that it has acquired a 6.25-percent equity stake in Acleda Bank, a commercial bank headquartered in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, that provides deposits and microcredit in Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar.
Kiva, a US-based microfinance intermediary, recently announced that it is winding down its peer-to-peer microfinance lending platform Kiva Zip in Kenya.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group that aims to increase economic growth in developing countries, recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Ministry of Commerce of Myanmar.
Deutsche Bank, a Germany-based financial services company, recently announced that it had raised USD 100 million from unspecified private investors for the European Fund for Southeast Europe (EFSE), a Luxembourg-based microfinance investment vehicle (MIV).
During August 2015, Austrian asset manager C-Quadrat Asset Management issued loans worth the equivalent of USD 7 million via its two Vision Microfinance funds to unspecified microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Cambodia, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Nigeria and India.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral investment institution headquartered in London, England, is considering extending a credit line of USD 70 million to the National Bank of Kuwait-Egypt (NBK-Egypt), a commercial bank based in Cairo, Egypt.
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group that aims to increase economic growth in developing countries, recently announced that it will partner with the Ministry of the Economy of Belarus “to improve the business environment through measures that will support the growth of small, medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)”[1].
The Philippine Senate has recently passed Senate Bill 2752, also called the Microfinance NGOs Act, which directs the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), an agency of the Philippine government regulating the securities market in an effort to promote economic efficiency, to establish the Microfinance Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) Regulatory Council. [1]
The United Nations recently released the final version of, “Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development,” highlighting 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) with 169 associated targets intended to eradicate poverty by the year 2030.
The government-backed Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) recently announced that it has set up a fund with INR 10 billion (USD 154 million) to provide concessional financing to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the manufacturing sector. As per a statement released by SIDBI, the objective of the fund is to transform the Indian MSME sector into a “world class manufacturing hub” in line with the Indian government’s “make in India” program.
Event Name: 30th Small Enterprise Education and Promotion (SEEP) Network Annual Conference: Inclusion and Resilience: The Next Challenge
Event Date: September 28 – October 1, 2015
Event Location: Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel, Arlington, Virginia, USA
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), the country’s central bank, recently issued a nationwide microfinance banking license to Apna Microfinance Bank (Apna MFB) thereby enhancing its status from that of a district-based bank. This license permits Apna MFB to expand its operations outside the city of Karachi, Pakistan, where it operates five branches.
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the foreign assistance agency of the US government, recently agreed to give the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), a US-based association of credit union groups in 54 countries, a donation up to USD 6 million under USAID’S “Home Ownership and Mortgage Expansion” (HOME) facility.
The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a Luxembourg-based provider of financial services to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other social businesses, recently informed MicroCapital that it has issued the following loans: (1) The equivalent of approximately USD 676,000 in local currency over three years to Première Agence de Microfinance au Burkina Faso (PAMF – BF), a microfinance institution (MFI) in Burkina Faso; and (2) the equivalent of approximately USD 845,000 in local currency over three years to Première Agence de Microfinance Côte d’Ivoire (PAMF – CI), an MFI in Ivory Coast [1].
BlueOrchard Finance (BlueOrchard), a Switzerland-based commercial manager of microfinance investments, recently announced the appointment of Dr Patrick Schuerle as the organization’s new Chief Executive Officer as of January 1, 2016. Dr Schuerle will succeed Mr Peter Fanconi, who will serve as the Chairman of the Board from that time.
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral investment institution headquartered in London, is considering extending a credit line of EUR 20 million (USD 22 million) to Belinvestbank (BIB), a state-owned bank in Belarus.