MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FINCA Ventures Places Equity in Agtech CassVita, Seeking to Boost Incomes from Farming Cassava in Cameroon

FINCA Ventures, an affiliate of the US-based NGO FINCA International, recently invested an undisclosed sum to take a minority stake in CassVita, an agricultural technology (agtech) firm aiding Cameroonian farmers in cultivating cassava as a climate-resilient alternative to other crops. CassVita finances farmers’ inputs, purchases their crops and processes the cassava into flour. This approach curbs spoilage,

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Baobab+ Borrows $1.3m from Oikocredit to Boost Household Access to Technology, Solar Energy in Rural Côte d’Ivoire

The Ivorian unit of the France-based renewable energy company Baobab+ recently borrowed EUR 1.2 million (USD 1.3 million) from Dutch cooperative investor Oikocredit. Baobab+ is active in six African countries, primarily selling

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IsDB, La Poste Tunisienne to Replicate Digital Financial Services via Postal Service in Djibouti

Based on their success replicating the digital financial services of Tunisia-based postal service La Poste Tunisienne in Mauritania, the multilateral Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) and La Poste Tunisienne recently agreed to partner to expand the financial inclusion

SPECIAL REPORT: The Impact of Digital Financial Inclusion on Global Development

In September 2015, every UN member country endorsed the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which comprises 17 target areas known as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

After falling from 10.1 percent in 2015 to 8.6 percent in 2018, the global poverty rate increased to 9.2 percent in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, reversing a long trend of poverty reduction. Other headwinds such as armed conflicts, rising inflation, food in­security, and political and social unrest also are affecting global devel­opment, and the UN estimates that these crises combined to cause an additional 95 million people to live in extreme poverty in 2022.

On the other hand, the digital revolution has made many people’s lives easier with access to mobile phones, the internet and other tools. Digital financial inclusion (DFI) and its innovative business models have had a particularly disruptive effect, bolstering financial inclusion worldwide.

Impact on Sustainable Development Goals
DFI is enabling all types of pathways to advance the achievement of the SDGs, strengthening the link between financial inclusion and de­vel­opment. In 2016, CGAP and

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Driving Digital Financial Services in Africa Through Merchant Acceptance of Digital Payments,” published by Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI)

This paper examines the growth and challenges of digital payment adoption by retailers in Africa, including “contactless payment (QR codes, tap to pay) [and] buy-now-pay-later” services. The authors note four main prerequisites for merchant adoption:

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: Kashf Foundation of Pakistan Borrows in Local Currency from SEB Microfinance Funds, Arranged by Symbiotics

Kashf Foundation, a provider of microloans and microinsurance to women in Pakistan, recently secured a local-currency loan of undisclosed size from SEB Microfinance Funds, an offering of

MICROFINANCE EVENT: AFSIC: Investing in Africa; October 9-10, 2023; London, UK

The tenth edition of the Africa Financial Services Investment Conference (AFSIC) will promote investing in the continent with presentations on trends in environmental protection and sectors such as agriculture and financial technology (fintech). In addition to country-specific investment and networking meetings, the agenda includes sessions titled: (1) Banking in Africa – for

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FSD Africa Issues Convertible Loan of $1.2m to Africa Climate Ventures (ACV) Fund to Reduce Human Impacts on Environment

Africa Climate Ventures (ACV), a Rwanda-based venture fund that invests in “green” companies across Africa, recently borrowed EUR 1 million (USD 1.1 million) in the form of a convertible loan from Financial Sector Deepening (FSD) Africa Investments, an affiliate of the Kenya-based NGO FSD Africa. FSD Africa Investments is supporting the loan with

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

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bankingly, Woodcore Partner to Help FSPs in Africa to Offer Digital Financial Services

Bankingly, a Uruguay-based company that helps smaller financial services providers (FSPs) implement digital financial services, and Woodcore, a provider of core banking software with offices in Nigeria and the US, recently partnered on an effort to help microfinance institutions and other FSPs in Africa to add

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global SME Finance Forum; September 12-14, 2023; Mumbai, India

The ninth iteration of this event will explore financial services providers’ delivery of digital services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), leveraging samples from India and abroad. The forum will cover topics – particularly “ecosystems” – relating to digital finance, international

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: 24 Education Technology Startups in Kenya, Nigeria Joining Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship

The Canada-based Mastercard Foundation recently announced that 24 educational technology (edtech) startups in Kenya and Nigeria have joined the Mastercard Foundation EdTech Fellowship program, which promotes “technology in learning and teaching to benefit learners, education and edtech innovators across the continent” of Africa. The Kenyan inductees are listed at:

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BIO Loans $15m to AMK Microfinance of Cambodia

BIO, a government-owned institution also known as the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries, recently loaned USD 15 million to Cambodia’s Angkor Microheranhvatho Kampuchea (AMK). AMK provides individuals as well as micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises with

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FSPs in Ecuador to Evaluate Role of Bias in Financial Access for Women-led MSMEs with Support from IDB Invest, RFD

Red de Instituciones Financieras de Desarrollo (RFD), a network of 53 banks, cooperatives and nonprofit financial services providers (FSPs) in Ecuador, recently agreed to partner with IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, to offer RFD members advisory services relating to boosting their financing of female-led micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). RFD will distribute an online survey designed by the IDB Group to address

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mogo Kenya Borrowing $7m from Verdant Capital Hybrid Fund to Boost Vehicle Ownership

Mauritius-based Verdant Capital recently announced that it will lend USD 7 million from its Verdant Capital Hybrid Fund to Mogo Kenya, a subsidiary of Latvia-based Eleving Group, to fund two-, three- and four-wheeled vehicles – some powered by electricity – for self-employed taxi and delivery drivers. The loan is structured in two tranches,

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: I&M Bank Enables Spenn Mobile App Users to Send Money to Financial Institutions Across Rwanda 

Norway’s Spenn Technology recently expanded its partnership with the Rwandan unit of Kenya’s Investments & Mortgages (I&M) Bank to allow users of the Spenn mobile application to send money to any financial services provider in Rwanda, including banks and competing mobile money services. The app’s other features include