MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation Loans $420k to Burkina Faso’s ASIENA, $330k to Agora Microfinance Zambia

The Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF), a Luxembourg-based provider of financial services to microfinance institutions (MFIs), recently informed MicroCapital that it is loaning the local-currency equivalent of EUR 380,000 (USD 422,000) over three years to the Association Inter Instituts Ensemble et Avec (ASIENA), a health and financial services provider established by female religious groups in Burkina Faso, and EUR 300,000 (USD 333,000) to Agora Microfinance Zambia (AMZ), an affiliate of Netherlands–based Agora Microfinance that serves low-income rural households.

As of 2015, AMZ had total assets of USD 910,000, a gross loan portfolio of USD 703,000 and 10,300 active borrowers. As of 2014, AMZ reported a return on assets (ROA) of -103 percent. Agora Microfinance is affiliated with MFIs in Cambodia, India and Zambia.

As of 2012, ASIENA reported to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) a gross loan portfolio of USD 1.6 million, 11,300 borrowers, deposits of USD 957,000 and 683 depositors. More recent data on the MFI is unavailable.

As of December 2014, GCAMF reported total assets of EUR 51 million (USD 57 million) and return on assets (ROA) of 6.6 percent. Since its inception in 2008 through March 2016 it has invested in 46 MFIs, 13 social-business projects, and one fund.

By Petra Barbu, Research Associate

About Agora Microfinance Zambia

AMZ was founded by Netherlands-based holding company Agora Microfinance LLP and Ireland-based NGO Concern Worldwide to provide access to finance to poor people. AMZ became a private company in May 2010 and was licensed as a non-deposit-taking nonbank financial institution by the Bank of Zambia in April 2011. AMZ specifically targets low-income rural households in the Mongu and Mumbwa districts. 99 percent of clients are first-time borrowers, and most are employed in subsistence agriculture, fishing and retail trade. As of 2015, AMZ had total assets of USD 910,000, a gross loan portfolio of USD 703,000 and 10,300 active borrowers. As of 2014, AMZ reported return on assets (ROA) of -103 percent. It does not take deposits.

About Agora Microfinance

Agora Microfinance NV is a microfinance holding company that creates and supports microfinance institutions in frontier markets with the mission of maximizing “social returns,” while realizing a fair and attractive financial return for the company’s investors and partners. Agora works as an “operator-investor,” placing equity in MFIs and then engaging them in the areas of strategy and execution. As of 2016, Agora Microfinance is affiliated with MFIs in Cambodia, India and Zambia. Headquartered in Amsterdam, Agora is managed by Agora Microfinance Partners LLP of London.

About The Association Inter Instituts Ensemble et Avec

The Association Inter Instituts Ensemble et Avec (ASIENA) was created in Burkina Faso by 33 religious congregations in 2002 with support from French NGO Comité Catholique contre la Faim et pour le Développement (CCFD). ASIENA provides entrepreneurship support, mutual health insurance and other forms of microfinance to its members. French NGO Solidarité Internationale pour le Développement et l’Investissement (SIDI) is among the institution’s supporters. As of 2012, ASIENA reported to the US-based nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) a gross loan portfolio of USD 1.6 million, 11,300 borrowers, deposits of USD 957,000 and 683 depositors. More recent data on the institution are not available as of 2016.

About Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation

Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation (GCAMF) provides financial services to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other social businesses. GCAMF was founded in Luxembourg in 2008 by Credit Agricole SA, a French retail bank, and Grameen Trust, a non-profit microfinance organization affiliated with the Grameen Bank of Bangladesh. In financing MFIs, GCAMF focuses on those that prioritize rural development, transparency, consumer protection and serving women. The foundation has been active in 18 countries in Africa, Asia and Europe. As of December 2014, GCAMF reported total assets of EUR 51 million (USD 64 million) and ROA of 6.6 percent. Since its inception in 2008 through October 2015, the foundation has invested in 46 MFIs, 13 social-business projects and one fund in 22 countries.

Sources and Additional Resources:

[1] Information provided directly to MicroCapital by GCAMF

[2] MicroCapital Universe Profile: Grameen Credit Agricole Microfinance Foundation

[3] MicroCapital Universe Profile: Agora Microfinance Zambia

[4] MicroCapital Universe Profile: Association Inter Instituts Esemble et Avec

[5] MicroCapital Brief: https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-grameen-credit-agricole-microfinance-foundation-loans-340k-in-local-currency-to-senegals-mec-fadec-930k-to-tajikistans-humo-partners/

[6] MicroCapital Universe Profile: Agora Microfinance

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