The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) recently reported Oikocredit, a Dutch cooperative fund invested USD 4.7 million in loans to microfinance institutions in India and Ghana this past February 2008. A loan of USD 1.2 million went to Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment PVT (SMILE) of Madurai, India. Gram-Utthan, a CARE CASHE project in Orissa, India received a loan of USD 1.5 million, and Amalgamated Bank Limited of Ghana was granted a loan of USD 2 million.
Oikocredit is a Dutch cooperative investment fund comprised of church groups, social support groups, and individual investors. Established in 1975, Oikocredit invests in MFIs, small businesses and cooperatives with 637 projects worldwide in 37 focus countries. Oikocredit’s investments are largely successful, with loan loss of less than ten percent, throughout their 33 years of activity. The fund has USD 455.8 million in assets as of December 2006, with USD 131.7 million allocated for investments in microfinance institutions in the next twelve months.
Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment PVT (SMILE) is the largest Grameen-model microfinance institution in Southern India. Established originally in 1999 as Mahasemam Trust, SMILE is a non-bank financial company (NBFC) that targets poor women, offering microfinance services including savings, loans, and insurance to promote poverty alleviation and sustainable development in the Southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. SMILE currently has over 175 thousand active borrowers and a total loan portfolio of USD 16.4 million with total assets of USD 20 million as reported by The Mix Market. Their return on assets (ROA) was reported at .46 percent as of December 2007 with a return on equity (ROE) of 6.15 percent.
Gram-Uttham is a microfinance institution founded in 1990 in the eastern Indian state of Orissa as part of the CARE India/ Credit and Savings for Household Enterprise (CASHE) project to facilitate social and economic development in poor rural villages. Gram Uttham offers credit, savings, insurance, and self-help group services to clients, focusing on local fishing villages. Gram-Uttham currently has over 41 thousand active borrowers and a total loan portfolio of USD 5.5 million and total assets of USD 6.6 million. Their return on assets (ROA) was reported at -.8 percent in March 2007 with a return on equity (ROE) of -221.22 percent.
Amalgamated Bank Limited (AmalBank) of Ghana started their operations in 1999 as a merchant bank. As of December 2007, AmalBank had USD 7.8 million in capital. AmalBank’s financial services include credit, savings, mobile phone and internet baking, and Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) facilities. Further financial data was not available.
By Melissa Duscha
Additional Resources:
The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP)
The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) recent list of transactions
Gram-Utthan Mix Market Profile
Mahaseman-SMILE Mix Market Profile
Mahasemam Trust (MT) M-CRIL Rating Grade PDF file
Oikocredit:http://www.oikocredit.org/site/en/index.phtml?p=newhome
Oikocredit Active Portfolio: http://www.oikocredit.org/documents/projects/PortfolioUK.pdf
Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment PVT (SMILE)
Similar Posts:
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Invest, Oikocredit Subscribing to $20m Bond from CJA to Finance MSMEs in Ecuador, Targeting Underrepresented Groups
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Loans MyCredit $2.6m for SME Financing in Kenya
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Lending $4.9m to Support MSMEs Led by Women in Paraguay Via Ueno App
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Lends $3.3m to Witti Finances to Support SMEs in Côte d’Ivoire
- MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Peruvian Fintech Lender Prestamype Concludes $5m Equity Funding Round Led by Acumen Subsidiary ALIVE Ventures, Oikocredit
