Elevar Equity Advisors Private Limited (Elevar), a Bangalore-based private equity fund, has raised a USD 70 million fund that will invest in microfinance and other services in India, Mexico, the Philippines and Peru. Continue Reading »

A new report by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) and JP Morgan shows that despite the global financial crisis, microfinance institution (MFI) equity valuations continued to rise across all regions during 2009. Continue Reading »

The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), the microfinance information clearinghouse, recently released its third annual ranking of microfinance institutions (MFIs), The Mix Global 100. Continue Reading »

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group; IBM, a multinational computer corporation based in the United States; and Republic Bank Ltd., a commercial bank in the Caribbean, recently launched a free, online platform that aims to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) improve their performance. Continue Reading »

he International Finance Corporation (IFC), the lending arm of the World Bank, recently announced that it would provide advisory services and a USD 6 million loan to Fundacion Mundo Mujer (FMM), a Colombian nongovernmental organization (NGO) that offers microcredit services, in order to help FMM transform into a regulated financial institution. Continue Reading »

Financiera Independencia, a microfinance institution (MFI) located in Mexico, has announced that on February 24, 2010, its Board of Directors authorized the MFI to submit a request to receive a banking license, thus allowing it to offer a wider range of products and services as well as to receive funding from retail deposits. Continue Reading »

Compartamos Banco, a Mexican microfinance bank, reports that both its net income and its total loan portfolio increased by 33 percent in 2009. Fernando Alvarez Toca, the CEO of Compartamos Banco, reflected upon 2009 as “one of the most challenging years in Compartamos’ history” due to the global downturn [1]. Continue Reading »

Financiera Independencia, a Mexican microfinance institution (MFI) that focuses on urban lending to individuals, has closed an MXP 530 million (USD 41 million) deal to acquire Financiera Finsol, a Mexican MFI that focuses on group lending in rural areas, and three related entities: Finsol Vida, an insurance broker; Finsol, a service company; and Instituto Finsol Brazil, an MFI in Brazil. Continue Reading »

A recent article in US-based Newsweek magazine entitled ‘Big Crisis, Small Help’ examines the importance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in mitigating crises in post-disaster environments. Continue Reading »

The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), the microfinance information clearinghouse, recently released two benchmarking reports covering the microfinance market in Mexico and Paraguay. Continue Reading »

Global Partnerships, a non-governmental organization (NGO) that supports microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America, has announced its expansion to Mexico through a USD 500,000 loan made to Fundación Realidad (FRAC), a nonprofit MFI located in Mexico. Continue Reading »

According to a new report from CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) and the U.K.’s Department for International Development (DFID) entitled, ‘Banking the Poor via G2P Payments,’ existing government payment programs could bring many more poor people into the formal financial services system. Continue Reading »

The Microfinance Association (MA), an international membership organization for practitioners in the microfinance industry, has launched its Global Academy Program (GAP). Continue Reading »

MFTransparency, founded in July of 2008 as part of a global initiative to promote transparent pricing in the microfinance industry, has launched a blog to complement its website. Continue Reading »

ES Global, a consulting firm that focuses on social investing and micro- and small enterprise development, has created a wiki for post-crisis management support to microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Haiti. Continue Reading »

The Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), the trade union of United States Major League Baseball players, recently pledged USD 100,000 to Esperanza International, an organization that aims to alleviate poverty with social programs and microcredit, to aid in the reconstruction of Haiti. The donation will come from the MLBPA’s Players Trust, a fund created by the MLBPA. Continue Reading »

The International Finance Company (IFC), the investment arm of the World Bank, has signed a long-term agreement with Mexico’s Sistema Integral de Abasto Rural, known as Mi Tienda, to help the distribution center expand its operations to provide owners of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with microcredit, insurance, and other financial services. IFC has agreed to provide USD 2.5 million in equity financing to support the expansion. Continue Reading »

Overview:
Established in 1947, the Central Bank of Dominican Republic (Banco Central de la Republica Dominicana, BCRD) is the nation’s central bank. Continue Reading »