RSS 1.0
Blogs that Link Here
SANAD Fund for MSME, a Luxembourg-based investment fund, has invested in Lebanon for the first time with a USD 5 million loan to BLC Bank sal, a Lebanese commercial bank. Continue Reading »
MicroCapital Monitor
We can email you everything you need to know about microfinance news, research, events and key players.
External Links
-
» Currently browsing: Middle East
Thursday, January 5, 2012
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: “SANAD Fund for MSME” to Loan $5m to BLC Bank of Lebanon for On-Lending to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises
Monday, December 5, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Private Equity Fund Acquires 20% Stake in Microfinance Holding Company CHF Development Finance International, Focus to be on Middle East
The BlueOrchard Private Equity Fund (BOPE Fund), a microfinance investment vehicle managed by Switzerland’s BlueOrchard, recently acquired a 20 percent stake in US-based CHF Development Finance International, a holding company established by development organization CHF International to own and manage CHF’s commercially-oriented microfinance subsidiaries. Continue Reading »
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mint Technology Forms Microfinance Subsidiary “Mint Money” Targeting Market in United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Mint Technology Corporation (Mint), a Toronto-based provider of prepaid credit card programs to employers, has created Mint Money, a subsidiary that will seek to offer microfinance loans directly to its existing cardholder base starting during the first quarter of 2012. Continue Reading »
Thursday, October 6, 2011
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Challenges of Designing Shariah Compliant Microfinance, October 21, 2011, New York, United States
Event Name: The Challenges of Designing Shariah Compliant Microfinance Conference
Event Date: 6.30 pm, October 21, 2011
Event Location: Deutsche Bank Auditorium, New York, United States Continue Reading »
Monday, October 3, 2011
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Second International Conference on Inclusive Islamic Financial Sector Development, Khartoum, Sudan, October 9 – October 11, 2011
Event Name: Second International Conference on Inclusive Islamic Financial Sector Development: Enhancing Financial Services for Regional Micro-enterprises
Event Date: October 9 – October 11, 2011
Event Location: Sudan Academy for Banking and Financial Sciences (SABFS), Khartoum, Sudan Continue Reading »
Sunday, October 2, 2011
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Inclusive Financial Services Stakeholders Conference, Erbil, Iraq, October 3 – October 4, 2011
Event Name: Inclusive Financial Services Stakeholders Conference
Event Date: October 3 – October 4, 2011
Event Location: Erbil, Iraq Continue Reading »
Friday, September 30, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Dr Muhammad Yunus Suggests Microfinance “Misinterpreted” as Charity in the Arab World due to Outdated Regulation
Dr Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Bangladeshi microfinance institution (MFI) Grameen Bank, recently argued that the Arab world has “misinterpreted the system’s true principles” by operating it as a “charity affair” [1]. Continue Reading »
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Mobile Money Global Summit and Expo, Dubai, United Arab Emirates, October 31 – November 3, 2011
Event Name: Mobile Money Global Summit and Expo, 2011
Event Date: October 31 – November 3, 2011
Event Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE)
Continue Reading »
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tuninvest-Africinvest Announces Close of Maghreb Private Equity Fund III, Investing in Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Egypt
The Tuninvest-Africinvest Group, a Tunisia-based private equity company that invests in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), recently announced the closing of its Maghreb Private Equity Fund III (MPEF III) with approximately EUR 96 million (USD 134 million) in capital commitments. Continue Reading »
Thursday, August 11, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Portfolio Risk Jumps in Tunisia, Egypt, As a Result of Political Unrest
Sanabel, a network of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Arab countries, has reportedly released results of a survey of MFIs in Tunisia and Egypt that indicates a significant increase in portfolio-at-risk (PAR) since political instability and social unrest recently broke out in those countries. Continue Reading »
Friday, July 29, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Survey Conducted by Yemen Microfinance Network (YMN) Indicates Microfinance Institutions Facing Operational Difficulties Because of Ongoing Political Tension
According to a survey conducted by the Yemen Microfinance Network (YMN), a member-based nonprofit organization, microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the country have been negatively affected by the ongoing political climate and are facing an uncertain future. Continue Reading »
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Investment Bank (EIB) Sponsors Research Programs on Rising Risk in Microcredit
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has submitted a call for proposals to select university centers that wish to conduct research on the theme of the rising risk of microcredit, which include possible cause factors, warning signals, current states and future prospects. Continue Reading »
Friday, July 15, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to Guarantee $500m in Loans to Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) for Lending to Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in Egypt, Jordan; USAID to Fund Technical Assistance
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a US government agency that supports private sector development, has approved USD 250 million in loan guarantee facilities each in Egypt and Jordan for local banks that lend to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), microfinance institutions (MFIs), non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) and “other approved borrowers.” Continue Reading »
Monday, June 27, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: USAID, VEGA/IESC Announce Second Phase of “Lebanon Investment in Microfinance” Program
The US Agency for International Development (USAID), a government institution that provides economic and humanitarian assistance, and Volunteers for Economic Growth Alliance / International Executive Service Corps (VEGA/IESC), a US-based partnership focusing on private sector development, recently announced the commencement of the second phase of the Lebanon Investment in Microfinance (LIM) program, which will provide funding to seven microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Lebanon: Association for the Development of Rural Capacities (ADR); Association d’Entraide Professionelle (AEP); Al Majmoua; Ameen; Lebanese Cooperative for Development (CLD in French); Emkan; and Makhzoumi Foundation. Continue Reading »
Thursday, June 16, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Loans $6m to ProCredit Bank of Moldova, Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) Russia, FINCA Jordan
responsAbility Social Investments AG (responsAbility), a Swiss asset management company that invests in microfinance institutions (MFIs) and microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs), recently reported to MicroCapital that it has loaned the equivalent of USD 6.3 million to ProCredit Bank of Moldova, Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) Russia and FINCA Jordan through MIVs that it manages. Continue Reading »
Monday, June 13, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) Announces New Policy Framework for Expansion of Microfinance Industry in Jordan
The Ministry of Planning and International Cooperation (MoPIC) in Jordan, with assistance from KfW, a German government-owned development bank, recently developed a new policy framework for the microfinance industry. Continue Reading »
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: Bank-Insured RoSCA for Microfinance: Experimental Evidence in Poor Egyptian Villages; By Mahmoud El-Gamal, Mohamed El-Komi, Dean Karlan, Adam Osman; Published by Rice University Department of Economics
By Mahmoud El-Gamal, Mohamed El-Komi, Dean Karlan, Adam Osman; published by Rice University Department of Economics; April 2011; 27 pages; available at http://www.uh.edu/~achin/workshop/EMF-04-11.pdf Continue Reading »
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation to Advise Saudi Hollandi Bank on Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) Market in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Hollandi Bank (SHB), a Saudi Arabia-based, publicly-owned commercial bank, recently signed a cooperation agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private-investment arm of the World Bank Group, to receive advisory services on expanding the provision of credit to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Saudi Arabia. Continue Reading »