MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $4m to Grooming Centre in Effort to Reach 780k Nigerian Microenterprises

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group, recently announced that it has committed to loan NGN 650 million (USD 4 million) to Grooming Centre, a Nigerian microfinance institution (MFI), to assist in expanding its reach to a total of 780,000 existing small businesses by 2018, including by expanding its coverage in rural areas of the country.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Al-Amal Microfinance Bank of Yemen to Receive $4.2m Donation from Saudi Fund for Development

The Al-Amal Microfinance Bank of Yemen has received a donation of USD 4.2 million from the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), the international aid agency of the Saudi government [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroCred Holding Raises $11m in Equity from Danish Microfinance Partners

MicroCred Holding, a French microfinance investment company that was created by French NGO PlaNet Finance, has raised EUR 8.4 million (USD 11.4 million) in equity funding through an issue of new shares to Danish Microfinance Partners (DMP), a Danish investment fund that invests in micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Switzerland-based responsAbility Participations Completes Capital Increase of $26m to Increase Investments in Developing-Country Banks

ResponsAbility Participations AG, a Swiss investment company, reportedly has completed a capital increase of CHF 23.5 million (USD 26.4 million), bringing the company’s total equity capital to CHF 42.4 million (USD 47.6 million).

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Loans $20m to Attawfiq Micro-Finance for Microlending in Morocco

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a US-based development finance institution and a member of the US-based World Bank Group, recently loaned USD 20 million to Attawfiq Micro-Finance, a nonprofit microfinance institution (MFI) based in Casablanca, Morocco, for onlending to microenterprises in an effort to further Morocco’s economic development.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Lends $14m to Societe Generale Banka Montenegro to Support On-Lending for Housing

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral institution headquartered in London, is lending EUR 10 million (USD 13.5 million) to Societe Generale Banka Montenegro, a subsidiary of French banking group Societe Generale, for on-lending to individual borrowers to finance long-term residential mortgages in Montenegro.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Chinese Internet Companies Alibaba, Baidu Offer Financial Services Through Subsidiaries Yu’e Bao, Baifa

Internet companies in China reportedly are increasing financial inclusion through services such as Yu’e Bao, an online savings and investment product of e-commerce player Alibaba Group, and Baifa, an online “wealth management” product launched by search engine Baidu [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Absolute Portfolio Management Loans $18m from Dual Return Funds to Microfinance Institutions in Asia, Latin America

Absolute Portfolio Management (APM), an Austrian firm that invests in microfinance and other sectors, recently disbursed loans totaling USD 18.5 million for microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Ecuador, El Salvador, Georgia, India, Peru, Sri Lanka and Tajikistan [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kompanion Financial Group of Kyrgyzstan Receives Syndicated Loan of $12m from European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappijvoor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO)

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral financial institution, has announced that it has arranged a three-year syndicated loan in local currency equivalent to USD 12 million for Kompanion Financial Group, a microfinance institution (MFI) in Kyrgyzstan [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Applications Open for Vodafone Americas Foundation’s $600,000 Wireless Innovation Project Contest

Vodafone Americas Foundation, a US-based subsidiary of UK-based Vodafone Group, has devised the Wireless Innovation Project, a contest to encourage the implementation of wireless technology to tackle social issues across the globe.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Lends $47m to Orient Express Bank of Russia to Support Energy Efficient Investments, Agriculture

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral financial institution, has announced that it has disbursed three loans in local currency equivalent to EUR 34 million (USD 46.5 million) to Orient Express Bank (OEB), a private commercial bank in Russia [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Citigroup, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) Lend $10m to Bank of Georgia to Support Financial Inclusion of Micro-, Small Enterprises (MSEs)

Citigroup (Citi), a US-based financial services corporation with operations in 140 countries, and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a development finance institution of the US government, have announced a term-loan of USD 10 million to Bank of Georgia, a commercial bank in Georgia that is a subsidiary of UK-based Bank of Georgia Holdings, to support the financial inclusion of microentrepreneurs and small businesses in Georgia [1].

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroVest to Manage Calvert Foundation’s $50m Microfinance Investment Portfolio

Calvert Foundation, a US-based nonprofit organization specializing in social impact investment, recently announced that MicroVest Capital Management, a US-based private microfinance investment firm, will manage its USD 50 million microfinance investment portfolio.

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Global Financial Development Report 2014,” Published by the World Bank

“Global Financial Development Report 2014,” published by The World Bank, January 2014, 225 pages, available at http://econ.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/EXTDEC/EXTGLOBALFINREPORT/0,,menuPK:8816192~pagePK:64168176~piPK:64168140~theSitePK:8816097,00.html

This report draws on research and analysis of the global financial services market to address the needs of low-income people that do not have access to financial services and recommends policies that the authors believe would increase financial inclusion.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: UK’s CDC Group Makes $16m Equity Investment as Part of $36m Package for Equitas

The CDC Group, a development finance institution owned by the UK government’s Department for International Development, has made an equity investment of USD 16 million in Equitas Holdings Private Limited (Equitas), a microfinance company based in Chennai, India [1].

MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: From Access to Inclusion: Educating Clients; Economics of Digital Payment Systems; Financial Inclusion and Post Offices

From Access to Inclusion: Educating Clients,” published by Women’s World Banking; 2013; 32 pages, available at http://www.womensworldbanking.org/publications/access-inclusion-educating-clients/

This report addresses the use of mass media campaigns and one-to-one outreach by financial institutions to provide financial education to low-income women in order to promote increased usage of financial products. Research by Women’s World Banking (WWB) indicates that people with the most need for microfinance products, such as small business loans, savings accounts and microinsurance, often fail to use the services not because of lack of access, but rather due to inexperience with the formal financial sector.

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Deutsche Bank Grows Global Commercial Microfinance Consortium II Fund to $100m

Frankfurt-based financial services company Deutsche Bank recently met its goal of securing USD 100 million from various investors for its Global Commercial Microfinance Consortium II fund (Consortium II), which provides capital to microfinance institutions (MFIs).

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen-Jameel Microfinance to Loan $2m Each to Microfund for Women of Jordan, Al Majmoua of Lebanon

Grameen-Jameel Microfinance Limited, a nonprofit Cyprus-based joint venture of the US-based Grameen Foundation and the Saudi Arabia-based nonprofit Abdul Latif Jameel Community Initiatives, recently declared that it will loan USD 2 million each to Microfund for Women (MFW), a microfinance provider in Jordan, and Al Majmoua, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization (NGO) that lends to microenterprises.