ACCION International has been awarded the Juscelino Kubitschek Award by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) along with two other institutions for their contribution to development in Latin America and the Caribbean.  ACCION won the prize in the field of economics and finance which drew nominations from 30 institutions. The criteria used to select the winner for the field of economics and finance was based on the magnitude of its social impact.  The award recognizes contributions in two areas: economics and finance, and in the cultural, social and scientific fields.  Fe y Alegría and Associacao Vaga Lume will share the award for the social, cultural and scientific category, which received 115 nominations.  Continue Reading »

In an interview with Business News Americas (BN Americas), the Association of Financial Entities Specialized in Microfinance (ASOFIN)‘s Executive Secretary, Fernando Prado Guachalla, remarks, “Fortunately, we haven’t felt the [financial] crisis in the microfinance sector in Bolivia.” ASOFIN, established in 1999, is an association of eight microfinance institutions (MFIs) regulated by the Superintendence of Banks and Financial Entities (SBEF) in Bolivia. BN Americas reports that members of ASOFIN expanded their loans 42 percent overall in 2008 while maintaining an average interest rate of 19.5 percent. However, Mr. Prado discloses that loan growth rates might slow to 20 to 30 percent because “It’s not adequate at this time to maintain annual growth rates of 40 percent.” Mr. Prado is ASOFIN’s highest ranking official and a Bolivian economist with 28 years of experience. He served as Chief of Party on USAID’s SEFIR project in Bolivia and was Director of the Microfinance Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF), a Latin American bank. Continue Reading »

MiBanco CEO Rafael Llosa recently informed Business News Americas (BNA) (a provider of Latin America news and business information, headquartered in Santiago, Chile) that the microlender will ease the loan growth rate this year.  “We plan to slow our growth rate to 25-30 percent this year. Our strategy includes adding new clients but not aggressively as last year.  In light of the current economic environment, the bank is focusing on its core business (loans to micro and small enterprises) and has stopped issuing home loans,” Mr Llosa stated. Continue Reading »

Financiera Independencia, a Mexican microfinance bank, reported their first quarter 2009 Net Income of 117.2 million pesos (USD 8.9 million). This was a decrease of 40 percent on a year-to-year basis. Net Operating Revenue of 612.8 million pesos (USD 46.6 million) did not fall significantly over the same period (0.2 percent), however Interest Expense increased by 150 percent or 57 million pesos (USD 4.3 million) and the Provision for Loan Losses increased by 61 percent or 76.8 million pesos (USD 5.8 million). Continue Reading »

Source: Business News Americas
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Source: PR Newswire
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Source: Relief Web
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Banco Compartamos SA, a Mexican microfinance bank reported first quarter Net Interest Income after provisions rose 27.3 percent over the previous year to 913 million pesos (USD 69.6 million), and Net Income increased 14.7 percent from a year earlier to 288 million pesos (USD 21.9 million).  The increase was due primarily to an increase in interest income of 36.9 percent resulting from a 42.4 percent growth in the bank’s loan portfolio to 6.3 billion pesos (USD 480 million) due to a larger client base. Total active clients rose to 1,200,124 or an increase of 40.1 percent over first quarter 2008.  Offsetting these improvements was a 115.2 percent increase in interest expense due to the increase in leverage to finance this growth and secure funds in the volatile financial environment.  Continue Reading »

US President Barack Obama opened the fifth Summit of the Americas in Trinidad and Tobago with a speech outlining his administration’s policy toward the Western Hemisphere. As part of his response to the global economic crisis, the President announced a newly-formed Microfinance Growth Fund to jump start lending to small businesses in the region. Continue Reading »

Sebastian von Stauffenberg, MicroRate’s author of the 52 page report, provides a framework for how the impact of the global financial crisis on Latin America and the Caribbean MFIs evolved during the last quarter of 2008. 

While MFIs initially reported that the global financial crisis had yet to affect the economy in the LAC region, the latest data suggests that lending in 2008 slowed more dramatically than MFIs admitted to in October and November 2008.  MFIs reduced the number of loans to higher risk clients, enforced stricter lending criteria and strengthened provisioning policies, with some MFIs reducing their average loan balance. Continue Reading »

MicroPlace, a microfinance website, eBay Inc. company, and SEC registered broker/dealer, has launched a microfinance product available to retail investors with up to a six percent return, according to its website and a report on the Corporate Social Responsibility Newswire (CSR).  The opportunity comes just as Americans are considering what to do with their tax refunds.  According to a poll on taxsoftware.com, 58 percent of Americans planned to either save or invest their refunds and 27 percent planned to donate a portion to charity.  The investment offering targets loans to the poor in Nicaragua and is part of the unsecured, USD 20 million Nicaraguan Credit Alternatives (NICA) Fund offering, issued by Working Capital for Community Needs (WCCN).   Interest rates range between zero and six percent, terms vary by Note.  The Notes can be purchased directly from WCCN (traditional modality, minimum investment size USD 1000) or online through the MicroPlace website (online modality, minimum investment size USD 20). Traditional Notes are not senior to Online Notes.  The Notes are not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in reliance upon the exemption in Section 3(a)(4) for charitable organizations. To read a prospectus on the offering, click here.  For more information contact Annie Lescroart at MicroPlace.com, (anlescroart@ebay.com) (408)-376-7458. Continue Reading »

Dave Valle, a former Major League Baseball player for the Seattle Mariners, is the founder of microcredit agency Esperanza, whose mission is to help the poor in the Dominican Republic and Haiti start their own businesses. In addition to making loans, Esperanza has become active in community development: creating a school, computer training centers, a member-funded health care plan, a water treatment system, and a home improvement initiative.  The organization has also spearheaded the construction of five baseball fields. Continue Reading »

Luis Carlos Sarmiento Angulo, President of Grupo Aval SA informed financial newspaper La Republica, he intends to provide micro-lending services to the poorest sectors of the economy.  If Grupo Aval SA enters the microfinance industry, it will become the third financial institution on Columbia to specialize in microcredit.  Mr. Angulo is also exploring the possibility of a joint venture with Bangladesh’s microfinance firm Grameen Bank. Continue Reading »

Microfinance in Rural Areas in Haiti: The Experience of Fonkoze and of its Diaspora

April 6, 2009, Montreal, Canada

The Jeune Chambre de Commerce Haïtienne of Montreal (JCCH) and the new Montreal Microfinance Club invite you to a discussion with Katleen Félix, Project Director at Fonkoze, Haiti. Fonkoze has offered microfinance in Haiti for almost 15 years and has a presence in more than 40 rural regions. The institution has a base of approximately 190,000 depositors and 55,000 borrowers. Ms. Félix will present Fonkoze Haiti, its recent initiatives and her decision to work in this industry and in Haiti. Junia Barreau Vice-Consul for Investment, Commerce and Tourism of the Haitian Consulate, will be also present to answer questions. Continue Reading »

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and Fundación Telefónica have recently presented a report on mobile communications and access to financial services in Latin America.  The report is a result of a dialogue between public and private sector leaders, carried out through a series of workshops organized by the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) – a division of the IDB – and Fundación Telefónica.  The report analyses the level of development of mobile technologies and financial services in eight countries throughout Latin America and the Carribean.  A copy of the report was still unavailable at the time of this release. Continue Reading »

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, plans to lend USD 450 million to Peru, Colombia, and Ecuador over a 12-month period through to June 2009; however, in light of the global financial crisis that that amount may increase. The IFC is also increasing its support of microfinance institutions (MFIs) because they have been deemed an efficient way to lift people from poverty. Continue Reading »

In Brazil, ‘catadores’ (Portuguese for ‘collectors’) generally live on the edge of the city in squatter settlements, or in ‘favelas’ (‘inner-city slums’). Others are homeless and use their cart for shelter. Each day, catadores search for recyclable materials (p7) and separate them into categories: paper, cardboard, plastics, glass, metal, etc. Often accompanied by their children, catadores work in conditions that are unsafe and unsanitary. They are stigmatized (p18) as scavengers, and are often harassed. Yet according to Jutta Gutberlet, a professor at the University of Victoria (Uvic), catadores provide an important environmental service (p18) to the community. In Brazil, as in other countries where waste management is a problem, the informal recycling industry recovers valuable resources and re-inserts them into the production cycle; it prevents otherwise environmentally detrimental materials from being discarded; and it helps to clean up the streets, providing a healthier living environment. In 2005, with funding from the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), Dr. Gutberlet initiated a partnership between Uvic and the University of São Paulo to establish the Participatory Sustainable Waste Management (PSWM) project in metropolitan São Paulo. The purpose (p8) of the project is to increase the income generating abilities of the catadores, and harness the environmental services they provide, by enhancing their structural capacity to collectively commercialize their materials. Microfinance (p2), as a source of working capital and emergency funds, is a fundamental component of this effort. Continue Reading »

Source: Microrate
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