In an effort to broaden access to microfinance and encourage lending by private banks, the Brazilian government is expanding its National Program of Oriented Productive Microcredit (PNMPO in Portuguese), an initiative through which the government provides funding to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other financial service providers for on-lending to small businesses and microentrepreneurs. Continue Reading »

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, has agreed to provide long-term debt financing of seven years worth USD 50 million to Panamanian commercial lender Banco General, to increase the bank’s mortgage lending program for low-income households. Continue Reading »

In a recent report, “Inclusão Financeira,” the Central Bank of Brazil presents the bank’s financial inclusion initiative, which aims for improvements in governance, transparency, regulation, credit, technology, distribution channels and product diversity [1]. Continue Reading »

As part of their newly established Energy Inclusion Initiative, Luxembourg-based nonprofit organization Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA) and Germany-based partnership MicroEnergy International (MEI) have recently teamed up with Peruvian microfinance institutions (MFIs) Fondo de Desarrollo Regional (FONDESURCO) and Caja Municipal de Ahorro y Crédito de Huancayo (CMAC Huancayo) to deliver “green energy solutions” for microentrepreneurs. Continue Reading »

Absolute Portfolio Management GmbH, an Austrian investment company that specializes in microfinance, recently reported that the Dual Return Fund, a sub-fund of Absolute’s Vision Microfinance, made debt investments totaling USD 5 million in unnamed microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Colombia, Kazakhstan, Russia and Philippines [1]. Continue Reading »

responsAbility Social Investments AG (responsAbility), a Swiss asset management company that manages four microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs), recently reported to MicroCapital that it made local-currency loans equivalent to the following amounts through its MIVs: USD 2 million to ProCredit Ecuador; USD 2.97 million to ProCredit Mexico; USD 2.05 million to Financiera Confianza and USD 3.5 million to Edpyme Crear Arequipa, the last two of which are microfinance institutions (MFIs) located in Peru. Continue Reading »

The Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a member of the US-based Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently announced a USD 4.9 million loan and technical assistance package for Root Capital, a US-based nonprofit social investment fund that serves agricultural businesses that are considered too small and risky for mainstream banks and too large for microfinance funding. Continue Reading »

Fundación BBVA Microfinanzas (BBVA Microfinance Foundation), a Spanish nonprofit organization that supports a network of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America, is expanding its operations in the Chilean market by rebranding MFI Servicios Microfinancieros Credicoop SA as Emprende Microfinanzas. Continue Reading »

MicroRate Latin America, the Lima-based arm of the evaluator of microfinance institutions (MFIs), recently announced that it has been approved as a rating agency by Peru’s Superintendency of Banking, Insurance and Pension Fund Managers (SBS), which reportedly makes it the only regulated rating agency in Peru that specializes in microfinance. Continue Reading »

The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, and the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO in Dutch), a public-private partnership, will each provide local currency loans of CRC 7.8 billion (USD 15 million) to Costa Rica’s National Cooperative of Educators (Coopenae), a finance company that provides credit, savings and insurance products in the country. Continue Reading »

The Clinton Bush Haiti Fund (CBHF), a US-based nonprofit organization, will provide a grant of USD 850,000 to Fonds Haïtien d’Aide à la Femme (FHAF), a Haitian microfinance institution (MFI), to help reinvigorate its lending operations. Continue Reading »

Intermón Oxfam, the Spanish partner of UK-based nonprofit Oxfam International, has partnered with DKV Insurance (DKV), a subsidiary of the Germany-based reinsurance company Munich Re, to provide microinsurance in the Tungurahua region of South Quito, Ecuador. Continue Reading »

Développement international Desjardins (DID), a Canadian corporation that provides technical support to and investment in developing and emerging countries, recently announced that it is joining efforts with two agriculture nonprofits in a USD 20 million project funded by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) and the Haitian government to establish an agricultural finance and crop insurance system in Haiti. Continue Reading »

Compartamos, a holding company established in Mexico in 2010 with microfinance institution (MFI) Banco Compartamos as its only subsidiary, recently announced that upon receiving the approval of the Peruvian Securities and Exchange Commission, it settled the acquisition of an 82.7 percent stake in Financiera Créditos Arequipa SA (Financiera Crear), a Peruvian MFI, for USD 63 million. The transaction was initially announced by MicroCapital in March 2011. Banco Compartamos Director of Strategy Javier Fernández Cueto stated that this type of acquisition Continue Reading »

Banco Compartamos, a Mexican microfinance bank, reported net income growth of 17 percent to MXN 558 million (USD 46 million) and net operating income growth of 20.2 percent to MXN 787 million (USD 65 million) for the second quarter of 2011, as compared with the same period in 2010. Continue Reading »

Projeto Comunidade (Community Project), which was launched by Brazilian cosmetics firm Natura Cosmeticos SA (Natura) in February 2011, is reportedly helping to revive the local economy after illegal drug operations were significantly curtailed by joint police-military operations in Complexo do Alemão, a neighborhood in Rio de Janerio, Brazil. Continue Reading »