The authors of this study conducted a client-level analysis to examine differences in the investment behavior of female and male microcredit users in Kenya. The scope included
Tag: Women
MICROFINANCE EVENT: AEMFI 25th Anniversary; November 28 – December 1, 2023; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Themed, “MFIs in a Digital Era: Financial Inclusion for Job Creation and Women Empowerment,” this event offers microfinance institutions multiple opportunities to showcase their products and how they can contribute to reducing poverty. Researchers will also present their findings, and funders and government representatives will attend to collaborate on strategies for growing the industry. The event, whose primary organizer is the 50-member Association of Ethiopian Microfinance Institutions (AEMFI), event is
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Liberation Community Finance Expanding Branch Network, Product Lineup for Farmers, Women, Youth in Uganda
Liberation Community Finance (LCF), a microfinance institution (MFI) in Uganda, has several new initiatives:
– a partnership with Uganda’s Agricultural Business Initiative (aBi) to develop environmentally sensitive financial products for LCF’s clients who farm crops such as maize and pumpkins;
– a Women Commander model through which women who borrow in groups can earn commissions for monitoring loan repayments and recruiting additional borrowers; and
– a partnership with Uganda’s
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: OPEC Fund Lending $22m to Raiffeisen Bank for SMEs in Albania
As its first loan to a financial institution in Albania, the Austria-based OPEC Fund for International Development recently channeled EUR 20 million (USD 21.7 million) to the Albanian unit of Raiffeisen Bank to provide loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country. The scheme especially targets
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution PEBCo-Bethesda of Benin Borrows $2m from Incofin via Agricultural Liquidity Fund
Incofin, a Belgium-based investor, recently disbursed a loan of EUR 2 million (USD 2.1 million) to PEBCo-Bethesda, a microfinance institution in Benin, from the Agricultural Liquidity Fund (ALF).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Svatantra of India Paying Navi Group $179m for Microfinance Subsidiary Chaitanya
Svatantra Microfin Private Limited, an Indian non-banking financial company-microfinance institution (NBFC-MFI) recently agreed to pay INR 15 billion (USD 179 million) to India-based Navi Group in exchange for its fully-owned subsidiary Chaitanya. Navi was advised on the deal by
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Maquita Cushunchic Borrowing $2m from DID Aequitas Fund for Microfinance, Small-enterprise Lending in Ecuador
Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito Maquita Cushunchic, a financial institution founded by women in Ecuador, recently accepted a loan of USD 2 million from Aequitas, a fund managed by a holding of Desjardins International Development (DID), which in turn is a member of the Canada-based cooperative Desjardins Group. Maquita Cushunchic, which mainly serves micro- and small enterprises, was founded in 1997 and since has grown to serve
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ADB Issues Local-currency Bond in Mongolia to Finance Invescore Lending to Women-led MSMEs
The multilateral Asian Development Bank (ADB) recently issued a local-currency, three-year bond in Mongolia with a face value of MNT 13.7 billion (USD 4 million) and a coupon rate of 11.25 percent paid out semi-annually. The proceeds are to fund Invescore, a non-banking financial institution in Mongolia, to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Hamkorbank of Uzbekistan Borrows $50m from FMO to Fund SMEs Owned by Women, Youth; Microenterprise; Climate Projects
The Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO) recently loaned USD 50 million to Uzbekistan-based Joint Stock Commercial Bank Hamkorbank. Hamkorbank plans to use 70 percent of the fresh funds to finance
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Places $4.3m in Equity in Varashakti Housing Finance via India Progress Fund
Incofin, a Belgian investor in lower-income countries, has invested INR 350 million (USD 4.3 million) to take an equity stake of undisclosed size in Varashakti Housing Finance (VHF), a firm active in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Akbank Selling $300m in Bonds to DFC, AIIB, IFC – Half to Support Women-owned Businesses in Turkiye
Turkiye’s Akbank recently raised USD 300 million through the issuance of subordinated bonds to three development finance institutions. Half of the fresh cash is from the US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) for on-lending for business and consumer purposes to women in “underdeveloped cities” in the country. The remainder is
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Impact Minds: Standing Together; August 28-30, 2023; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
This event will promote networking among impact ecosystem actors to facilitate the deployment of capital in Latin America and the Caribbean. On August 27, members of the Colombia-based network Latimpacto will meet for a pre-event dinner. The main event offers sessions titled: (1) The Role of the Multilaterals Acting as
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Seedstars Accepting Applications from Fintechs Offering “Financial Innovations for Women Affected by Migration” Through July 30
Seedstars, a Switzerland-based investment and education firm, is accepting applications from financial technology (fintech) startups looking to scale up their services to women in Africa and Asia who have migrated from their homes or whose family members have done so. Seedstars is offering this support through its Financial Innovations for Women Affected by Migration (FIWAM) programme, which includes
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global SME Finance Forum; September 12-14, 2023; Mumbai, India
The ninth iteration of this event will explore financial services providers’ delivery of digital services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), leveraging samples from India and abroad. The forum will cover topics – particularly “ecosystems” – relating to digital finance, international
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BIO Loans $15m to AMK Microfinance of Cambodia
BIO, a government-owned institution also known as the Belgian Investment Company for Developing Countries, recently loaned USD 15 million to Cambodia’s Angkor Microheranhvatho Kampuchea (AMK). AMK provides individuals as well as micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises with
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FSPs in Ecuador to Evaluate Role of Bias in Financial Access for Women-led MSMEs with Support from IDB Invest, RFD
Red de Instituciones Financieras de Desarrollo (RFD), a network of 53 banks, cooperatives and nonprofit financial services providers (FSPs) in Ecuador, recently agreed to partner with IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, to offer RFD members advisory services relating to boosting their financing of female-led micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). RFD will distribute an online survey designed by the IDB Group to address
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation Loans $760k to Microfinance Institution Oxus Tajikistan
Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, which has offices in France and Luxembourg, recently lent Oxus Tajikistan, one of three microfinance institution (MFI) affiliates of the France-based Oxus Development Network, local currency approximately equivalent to USD 760,000. The purpose is to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Reefy Microfinance Borrows $6.5m from EBRD for Youth-led MSMEs in Egypt
Reefy Microfinance Enterprise Services, an Egypt-based microfinance institution (MFI), recently agreed to accept a loan of EGP 200 million (USD 6.5 million) from the UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). The loan is part of EBRD’s