PRESS RELEASE: Geneva: BlueOrchard Reports Microfinance Growth for 2008

Source: BlueOrchard

Original Article Available here

GENEVA, SWITZERLAND, April 2 – BlueOrchard, a global leader in commercial microfinance investment management, grew its assets by nearly one third in 2008, according to initial financial results for the year. As at 31 December 2008, BlueOrchard had USD 870 million total assets under management of which USD 670 million were invested with 130 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in 40 countries, up from investment portfolios of USD 580 million at the end of 2007 and USD 307 million at the end of 2006.*

BlueOrchard estimates that in 2008 its partner MFIs reached roughly 9 million micro-entrepreneurs worldwide, more than half of them women. “The microfinance sector continues to grow at a rate surpassing 20% per year even by conservative estimates.” Ernst A. Brugger, chairman of the board of BlueOrchard, commented. “Its resilience in the face of last year’s food crisis and of the on-going global financial and economical turmoil is gaining recognition among investors, notably with institutional investors, such as pension funds. We predict a mounting inflow of commercial placements in microfinance as a means to generate sustainable income and jobs in emerging markets while earning reasonable
returns.”

At the end of 2007, the company launched the BlueOrchard Private Equity Fund for which it raised USD 131 million in 2008. By 31 December 2008, USD 40 million had already been invested in 9 MFIs and microfinance network funds and over USD 65 million had been committed for further investments. Through its equity investments, BlueOrchard acquires minority stakes and assumes an active governance role in MFIs world-wide, thus forging long-term partnerships with the aim of contributing to the further expansion of the microfinance industry and its impact among marginalized populations.

“The BlueOrchard Private Equity Fund addresses one of the most pressing needs in the industry by making risk capital available to a range of microfinance institutions and funds worldwide,” said Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, CEO of BlueOrchard Investments, manager of the BlueOrchard Private Equity fund. “By sharing our financial and operational expertise and our connections, we aim to stimulate the development of our partner institutions and funds so that they can efficiently reach even more people at even lower levels”.

With respect to its lending activities, BlueOrchard disbursed 131 loans amounting to USD 191 million in 2008. The largest loans were of USD 5million for MFIs in Azerbaijan, Bolivia, Cambodia, Georgia and Nicaragua while the smallest were between USD 100,000 and 150,000 to MFIs in Azerbaijan, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Tajikistan. Since it first started to manage microfinance investments in 1998 to 31 December 2008, BlueOrchard has allocated 761 loans to 179 institutions for a total amount of USD 961 million. To date, all the loans have been reimbursed without any default.

“The funds managed by BlueOrchard did remarkably well again in 2008, in spite of a momentary freeze in investments during the last quarter of 2008,” Jean-Pierre Klumpp, CEO of BlueOrchard, remarked. “They showed a stable performance of between 4 to 8 %, depending on the type of product and investment currency. Most microfinance institutions have dealt very responsibly with the threats they had to face, and it shows in the good quality of their portfolios. The BlueOrchard strategy of building sound long-term relationships with an extensive network of partners is visibly paying off and everyone involved gains from it, from the micro-entrepreneur to the investor.“ In 2008, BlueOrchard also strengthened its operational and support capacities by adding expert resources to its team. Presently, 35 employees work for the group from its offices in Geneva, New York and Lima.

/*Note: all financial results are rounded, preliminary and unaudited./

/BlueOrchard is a Swiss company based in Geneva whose mission is to manage microfinance investment funds. It helps investors gain access to investment opportunities in the microfinance sector through a diversified range of products in services./

/More details about the microfinance investment vehicles managed by BlueOrchard and their social performance can be found in the recent edition of the BlueNews on http://www.blueorchard.com/jahia/Jahia/pid/270/

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