MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Sustainable Assets Fund (BOSAF) Raises $15m for Infrastructure Lending

The Swiss investment manager BlueOrchard recently raised an additional USD 14.6 million from undisclosed investors for its BlueOrchard Sustainable Assets Fund (BOSAF), an infrastructure debt fund active in “growth markets.” Among BOSAF’s outstanding placements are:

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Okra Solar of Nigeria Raises Equity, Debt Totaling $12m to Expand Mesh Grids in Africa, Americas, Asia

Nigeria-based Okra Solar, whose products serve 14,000 people in Cambodia, Haiti, Nigeria, and the Philippines, recently raised USD 8 million in equity from five investors. The investment package is led by US-based At One Ventures and includes USD 1.5 million from

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Sankalp Global Summit; October 19, 2023; Mumbai, India

The Sankalp Forum’s 15th Global Summit is themed “The Great Transition: Financing Climate Action for the Global South.” The program will focus on the promotion of: (1) Micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) seeking to reduce human impacts on the environment; (2) Switching to renewable – and affordable – energy sources; (3) Protecting biodiversity on land and in water;

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ResponsAbility Invests $40m in Equity in eFishery of Indonesia for Technology Helping Fish, Shrimp Farmers with Feeding, Water Quality, Documenting Sustainable Practices, Market Linkages

Switzerland-based responsAbility Investments recently paid USD 40 million for an equity stake of undisclosed size in eFishery, a company assisting Indonesian fish and shrimp farmers with automatic feeders and mobile apps. The money is sourced from the responsAbility fund Sustainable Food Asia II, which has raised USD 173 million as of 2023.

Founded in 2013, eFishery reports having partnered with 70,000 cultivators, including separate apps for

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Non-performing Loan (NPL) Ratios Up Among Microfinance Providers in Bangladesh

Bangladesh Bank, the country’s central bank, recently reported that the volume of non-performing loans (NPLs) in the domestic microcredit industry rose from BDT 45 billion (USD 412 million) in the fiscal year ending March 2021 (FY21) to

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Light Microfinance, IppoPay Partner to Offer Digital Lending to MSMEs in Rural India

Two Indian firms, Light Microfinance and IppoPay, have announced they will work together to offer digital lending services to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in “rural and semi-urban micro-markets” in four states:

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Svatantra of India Paying Navi Group $179m for Microfinance Subsidiary Chaitanya

Svatantra Microfin Private Limited, an Indian non-banking financial company-microfinance institution (NBFC-MFI) recently agreed to pay INR 15 billion (USD 179 million) to India-based Navi Group in exchange for its fully-owned subsidiary Chaitanya. Navi was advised on the deal by

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Land Titling and Microcredit in Cambodia: Examining the Reality of Hernando de Soto’s ‘Three Steps to Heaven,’” by Milford Bateman

In this paper, Dr Bateman examines the Cambodian microcredit industry and argues against prior claims that increases in land titling lead to access to credit that enables poor landowners to increase their incomes. The results are based on

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Annapurna Finance Borrowing $25m from responsAbility to Boost Renewable Energy, Energy-efficiency in India

The Switzerland-based firm responsAbility Investments recently loaned USD 25 million to Annapurna Finance, a microfinance institution (MFI) seeking to reduce poverty and spread economic opportunity in India. The MFI plans to on-lend the funds to families as well as smaller businesses looking to acquire solar panels and other equipment that reduces the need for fossil fuels. As Annapurna has

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Committing $30m to South Asia Growth Fund III to Support Equity Placements in Businesses Reducing Environmental Impacts, Mainly in India

US-based Global Environment Fund (GEF) Capital Partners recently secured USD 30 million for its South Asia Growth Fund (SAGF) III from the Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO). The funding is to boost the fund’s “equity and equity-linked” investments in middle-market institutions engaged in

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ADB Issues Local-currency Bond in Mongolia to Finance Invescore Lending to Women-led MSMEs

The multilateral Asian Development Bank (ADB) recently issued a local-currency, three-year bond in Mongolia with a face value of MNT 13.7 billion (USD 4 million) and a coupon rate of 11.25 percent paid out semi-annually. The proceeds are to fund Invescore, a non-banking financial institution in Mongolia, to

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Fintech Festival Thailand; September 26-28, 2023; Bangkok, Thailand

This conference will cover topics such as artificial intelligence, blockchain technology, cybersecurity, digital assets, insurance technology (insurtech), investing, payments, peer-to-peer (P2P) services and personal finance. The slate of speakers includes Chonladet Khemarattana, President of the Thai Fintech Association and CEO of investment advising firm Webull Thailand; Myrtle Anne Ramos, CEO of UAE-based blockchain

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Places $4.3m in Equity in Varashakti Housing Finance via India Progress Fund

Incofin, a Belgian investor in lower-income countries, has invested INR 350 million (USD 4.3 million) to take an equity stake of undisclosed size in Varashakti Housing Finance (VHF), a firm active in

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mastercard, Vodafone Fiji Partner to Provide Debit Cards to Mobile Money Users

Mastercard, a US-based financial services corporation, and Vodafone Fiji, an affiliate of the UK-based communications services provider Vodafone Group, have collaborated to launch the M-PAiSA Mastercard, which will give users of Vodafone Fiji’s M-PAiSA mobile money app the ability to

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ILO, UNCDF to Expand PICAP Climate Microinsurance Program to 8 Pacific Countries

The UN’s International Labour Organisation (ILO) recently joined the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in its efforts to expand climate risk insurance in the Pacific region. The Pacific Insurance and Climate Adaptation Programme (PICAP), which was launched in 2020 by UNCDF and two other UN agencies, has supported insurers in deploying parametric coverage in Fiji, Tonga and Vanuatu. Parametric insurance pays

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Seedstars Accepting Applications from Fintechs Offering “Financial Innovations for Women Affected by Migration” Through July 30

Seedstars, a Switzerland-based investment and education firm, is accepting applications from financial technology (fintech) startups looking to scale up their services to women in Africa and Asia who have migrated from their homes or whose family members have done so. Seedstars is offering this support through its Financial Innovations for Women Affected by Migration (FIWAM) programme, which includes