This event features 25 speakers in a format offering both in-person and virtual options. It will cover a range of technical, marketing, funding and other topics
Tag: Microcapital
MICROFINANCE EVENT: TBLI Conference Nordic 2018; November 8 – 9, 2018; Stockholm, Sweden
As in previous editions in several other countries, the next TBLI Conference will consider triple bottom line investing (TBLI) – investing that “benefits investor, environment, and society” – including environmental, social and governance (ESG) investing. Sessions will address the
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Aspen Network of Development Entrepreneurs’ (ANDE’s) Metrics from the Ground Up; June 12 – 13, 2018; Washington, DC, USA
Summary of Event: The tenth iteration of this event will address how to quantify impact in the “small and growing businesses” (SGBs) sector. Participants will take stock of the progress made over the last decade as well as discussing ways to overcome challenges in the industry. Draft agenda items include; Collecting Data Across the Five Dimensions of Impact, Using Outcome Data to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: JazzCash Mobile Money Users in Pakistan to Gain Access to Merchants Accepting Visa Cards
JazzCash, a mobile money service of Pakistan-based cellular phone network Mobilink, and Visa, a US-based payment technology company, recently announced that JazzCash Mobile Account customers will be able to make purchases from the millions of merchants worldwide that accept Visa payment cards, including approximately 50,000 retail outlets in Pakistan.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loaning up to $2m to Arvand of Tajikistan for On-lending to Micro- and Small Enterprises (MSEs)
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral institution, recently agreed to provide loan funds of up to TJS 15.7 million (USD 2 million) to Arvand, a Tajikistan-based microfinance institution (MFI), for on-lending to local micro- and small enterprises (MSEs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFMR Investment Managers Raising Third Debt Fund, IFMR FImpact Medium Term Microfinance Fund
The Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) Investment Managers, a unit of India-based IFMR Trust Group providing investment management services in asset classes that impact the financially excluded, is seeking to raise INR 1 billion (USD 15 million) for a debt fund called IFMR FImpact Medium Term Microfinance Fund to invest exclusively in microfinance firms.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Developing World Markets Closes Debt Investments Totaling $8.3m in Armenia, Colombia, India, Nicaragua
Developing World Markets (DWM), a US-based asset manager and investment bank, recently announced that it issued loans in February and March 2016 to four unidentified financial institutions serving microentrepreneurs, including a Colombian bank and non-banking financial institutions (NBFIs) in Armenia, India and Nicaragua.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: VisionFund International Buying Majority Equity Stake in Opportunity’s Microfinance Institution in Democratic Republic of Congo
Pending regulatory approval, VisionFund International, a US-based affiliate of the Christian humanitarian organization World Vision International, recently agreed to purchase a majority stake in Opportunity International’s (OI’s) microfinance institution (MFI) in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Mobile Money in Africa; Doing Business in Kyrgyzstan; Digitalization of Kenya’s Premier Credit
“Mobile Money Momentum in Four African Countries;” published by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor); December 2015; 101 pages; available at: http://www.cgap.org/news/new-data-cgap-sets-benchmark-use-mobile-financial-services
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Afluenta Raises $8m in Series B Equity Funding from International Finance Corporation, Elevar for Peer-to-Peer Lending in Latin America
Afluenta, an Argentina-based peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform, recently announced it closed a series B funding round totaling USD 8 million from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group that aims to increase economic growth in developing countries, and Elevar Equity, a “development-focused” private equity fund based in India.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: 4th Africa Financial Services Investment Conference (AFSIC); May 4-6, 2016; London, United Kingdom
Event Name: 4th Africa Financial Services Investment Conference (AFSIC)
Event Dates: May 4-6, 2016
Event Location: The Park Plaza Riverbank Hotel; London, United Kingdom
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI) to Distribute Funds from Government-Backed Kredit Usaha Rakyat (KUR) Microloan Program via Rural Banking Members of Perbarindo
Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI), a state-owned bank in Indonesia, recently signed an agreement with Perbarindo, an Indonesian association of rural banks, to support the government-backed microloan program Kredit Usaha Rakyat (KUR) channeling “subsidized loans” to micro- small and medium-sized enterprises.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) to Invest up to $200m in Equity in LeapFrog Investments
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a development finance institution backed by the US government, recently committed to investing up to USD 200 million in equity in Leapfrog Investments, a for-profit private equity fund based in Mauritius.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Prudential Financial to Invest $350m in African Insurers, To Be Managed by LeapFrog
Prudential Financial Incorporated, a US-based financial services company, recently announced an investment of USD 350 million in life insurance companies in African countries such as Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria.
MICROFINANCE PUBLICATION ROUND-UP: Financing Necessary for SMEs to Grow; Microfinance Challenges in the Arab World; Incofin on MFIs’ Social Performance
“ADB Report: Asia SME Finance Monitor 2014;” by S. Shinozaki, T. Chaiken, S. Jain, K. Dorofev, C. T. Delos Santos and J. Bautista; published by the Asian Development Bank (ADB); September 2015; 318 pages; available at: http://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/173205/asia-sme-finance-monitor2014.pdf
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Completes $153m Syndicated Loan to Sri Lanka’s Commercial Leasing & Finance (CLC)
Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), a Dutch development bank, recently served as lead arranger and facility agent to finalize a USD 153 million senior secured syndicated loan for Sri Lanka’s Commercial Leasing & Finance (CLC).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: African Development Bank (AfDB), MasterCard Collaborate on Financial Inclusion in Africa
The African Development Bank (AfDB), a multilateral institution providing loans and grants to governments and private companies on the continent; and MasterCard, a US-based payments and technology company, recently announced that they are launching a collaboration aimed at increasing financial inclusion in Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bangko Sentral Ng Pilipinas (BSP) Allows Micro-Banking Offices (MBOs) to Approve New Deposit Accounts
Bangko Sentral Ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Philippines, recently authorized micro-banking offices (MBOs) of financial institutions to extend the range of “allowable activities” [1] with the aim of increasing financial inclusion in the rural parts of the country.