At a recent conference held in Dakar, Senegal, a representative of the Central Bank of West African States (also known by the French acronym BCEAO) asked West African banks to decrease the interest rates they charge borrowers. Continue Reading »

The Bank of Bangladesh, the country’s central bank and financial services regulator, has introduced new guidelines regulating the opening of new branches and business centers by commercial banks. Continue Reading »

Published by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor); November 2, 2012, 47 pages; available at: http://www.cgap.org/sites/default/files/I-SIP%20Report_1.pdf Continue Reading »

In Myanmar, which recently lifted restrictions barring wholly foreign-owned direct investments, ACLEDA Bank Public Limited Company (PLC), a Cambodian commercial bank specializing in microfinance, plans to launch microfinance operations by January 2013. Continue Reading »

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the nation’s financial regulatory authority, recently announced plans to implement a financial literacy framework aimed at enhancing financial inclusion of unbanked people by  the first quarter of 2013. Continue Reading »

At a recent “Roundtable on Microinsurance” held in Karachi, Pakistan, the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), in concert with the Financial Sector Reform and Strengthening (FIRST) Initiative, a program of the World Bank that funds technical assistance for financial sectors in low- and middle-income countries, released a diagnostic report on the demand for and supply of microinsurance in the country. Continue Reading »

Opportunity International, a nonprofit organization headquartered in the USA that provides financial products in 24 developing countries, recently announced the establishment of a regulated microfinance bank that will take over the credit offerings it provides to underserved people in Bogotá, Colombia, in addition to rendering savings services. Continue Reading »

The Financial Stability Institute of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), an international financial institution based in Basel, Switzerland, which aids central banks in their pursuit of monetary and financial stability, recently hosted its first Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) Conference with the theme “Promoting financial inclusion through proportionate standards and guidance.” Continue Reading »

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the country’s financial regulatory authority, recently tasked regional rural banks (RRBs) to ensure that at least one-quarter of their proposed branches are sited in unbanked parts of the country.  Continue Reading »

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the country’s apex financial regulator, recently announced plans to disburse the sum of NGN 600 billion (USD 3.9 billion) as loans to small holder farmers. Continue Reading »

Ninety financial institutions in Ghana recently received their final operating licenses from the Bank of Ghana (BOG), the country’s central bank. Continue Reading »

This morning, representatives of Luxembourg-based nonprofit Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA) and the Red Centroamericana y del Caribe de Microfinanzas (REDCAMIF), a network of seven national microfinance networks, presented their progress to date on their joint effort to promote product innovation and capacity building among microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Central America and the Dominican Republic. The partnership, which was launched earlier in 2012, has a budget of EUR 5.5 million (USD 7 million) to be disbursed over a period of 4.5 years. The organizations have completed a survey of client needs in the region and have dedicated approximately 15 percent of the project budget to support networks in becoming self-sufficient, including through a fund to support national networks in developing products they can sell to their member MFIs. Continue Reading »

Brazil’s National Monetary Council, a body charged with regulating and monitoring Brazilian capital markets and financial institutions, recently increased the limit for each microcredit loan from BRL 20,000 (USD 9,840) to BRL 40,000 (USD 19,677). Continue Reading »

Event Name: 3rd Microfinance Summit Nepal

Event Date: February 14 – February 16, 2013

Event Location: Kathmandu, Nepal Continue Reading »

CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), a US-based nonprofit policy and research center dedicated to advancing financial access for poor people worldwide, is calling for interested individuals to respond to a short survey designed to clarify the demand for and the supply of capacity building services needed to advance financial inclusion.  Continue Reading »

The European Microfinance Network (EMN), a France-based NGO whose mission is to promote microfinance, microentrepreneurship and self employment to fight social and economic exclusion, recently announced plans to hold a debate on the topic “Microfinance as a tool of active ageing” on December 14, 2012, in Brussels. Continue Reading »

The Mongolian Bankers Association (MBA), a nonprofit association of  financial institutions in Mongolia; the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private investment arm of the World Bank Group; and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a development finance institution headquartered in London, recently  hosted a roundtable event to deliberate on lending  reforms with respect to broadening  access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and other borrowers in Mongolia. Continue Reading »

“The State of Microfinance Investment 2012: MicroRate’s 7th Annual Survey and Analysis of MIVs;” published by MicroRate; October 2012; 17 pages; available at: http://www.microrate.com/downloads/78 Continue Reading »