MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) Launches Microfinance Operations in Owerri, Nigeria

The Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA), a US-based nonprofit microfinance network, has formally launched the operations of FINCA Microfinance Bank (FINCA MfB) in Owerri, Imo, Nigeria, following the issuance of its license by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on October 30, 2014. FINCA MfB will provide various financial services, including deposit and loan products for Nigerian citizens and business owners. According to Mike Gama-Lobo, the Vice President and Regional Director for FINCA Africa, “FINCA enters this market with an unconventional approach to banking: client-centric and mission-based [using] … FINCA’s global best practices, delivered on the tenets of warmth, trust and responsible banking.” FINCA International has operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia and serves 700,000 people in Africa. FINCA’s microfinance subsidiaries are controlled by FINCA Microfinance Holding Company.

As of 2013, FINCA International has total assets of USD 1.1 billion and serves 1.7 million clients through subsidiaries in 22 countries.

By Simon Pfanner, Research Associate

About FINCA International

The Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) International, a nonprofit microfinance network based in Washington, DC, provides financial services to poor families through a network of locally managed institutions. FINCA was founded in 1984 by Dr John Hatch, who is known for helping develop “village banks” in which each member guarantees the loans of other members. FINCA targets its services to poor women living in the Americas, sub-Saharan Africa and Eurasia. As of 2013, FINCA International has total assets of USD 1.1 billion and serves 1.7 million clients through subsidiaries in 22 countries. In December of 2011, FINCA launched a for-profit subsidiary, FINCA Microfinance Holding LLC, with funding from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), KfW Bankengruppe, Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappijvoor Ontwikkelingslanden NV (FMO), responsAbility and Triple Jump.

Sources and Additional Resources

[1] FINCA News, FINCA Launches Operations in Nigeria

MicroCapital, October 12, 2014, Grameen Crédit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) to Loan $1.1m to FINCA Malawi, $580k to Réseau de Micro-institutions de Croissance de Revenus of Mali

MicroCapital, July 1, 2014, FINCA International Raises $30m in Debt in Nine Local Currencies to Support Financial Inclusion of Microentrepreneuers

MicroCapital, April 26, 2014, EBRD, EFSE to Loan $16m to FINCA Azerbaijan to Support Micro-, Small, Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs), Agricultural Lending

MicroCapital Universe Profile: FINCA International

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