by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Partner with Agents for Impact, and We’ll Drive Impact Together!

This article is sponsored by Agents for Impact (AFI). We invite you to learn more about the firm via LinkedIn.

Andrij Fetsun, Founder & CEO at AFI:
AFI celebrated five years in bus­iness in October this year, and my team has attained several impact­ful goals during this challenging time. This would not have been possible without the im­mense support of our clients: the Ger­man impact-driven microfinance fund Invest in Visions, which has accumu­lated a volume of around EUR 1 billion with a major focus on micro­finance; HANSA­INVEST, which is based in Hamburg; and the crowdfunding platform Lendahand. Among the services we provide these clients is to perform plausibility checks of their funds’ ESG reports.

As the founder of AFI, I would like to highlight the culture we have built with our dedicated team that has come to­gether during these five years from dif­ferent parts of the world. I believe that corporate culture is crucial for every com­pany, especially for startups. Initially, we had trouble attracting Agents since we were not a well-established name in the industry or able to pay high salaries from the outset. Therefore, I focused on what truly makes for a great workplace

by Rohit Dayanand -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Disburses $8m from Invest in Visions (IIV) to Microfinance Institutions Digamber of India, Imon of Tajikistan

Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed a loan of EUR 5 million (USD 5.5 million) to Digamber Capfin Limited, a microfinance institution (MFI) serving rural women in India, on behalf of Invest in Visions (IIV). AFI also

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Agents for Impact – We Make Positive Impact Investable!

Founded in 2018, Agents for Impact (AFI) celebrates its fifth anniversary this year. This represents five years of continuous commitment to our mission, which is to build bridges between impact investors and fi­nancial services providers in developing markets across the world. Sustainability is central to our vision. We aim to create more investment opportunities by mea­suring risks (Risk), rendering impact measurable and comparable (Rating), and making sustainability and financial inclusion understandable for investors (Research).

To acknowledge our jubilee, we kick off 2023 by looking back at our achievements and bringing some of our milestones to your attention. Since its inception, AFI has provided investment advice and recommendations on around USD 285 million in impact in­vesting transactions. So far, we have done business in 16 coun­tries across the globe, facilitating debt financing to 32 financial institutions (including one more since the December 2022 figures shown in the graph below!) – each of which was ana­lyzed and selec­ted according to strict standards of sustainability, alignment with a number of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Agents for Impact: Well-equipped for Future Business Development

Agents for Impact GmbH (AFI), which acts as an intermediary be­tween investors and the world of impact investing, successfully has won FS Invest Holding as an investor. With an eye on the long-term, as of August 2022, FS Invest took a 75-percent stake in our consulting bou­tique, which is focused on sustain­ability, impact investing and financial inclusion.

FS Invest is part of the Helmig family’s group of companies, which is already active in sev­eral other holdings in the financial sector, in­cluding through its ATON Group.

“We are pleased to have an experienced investor at our side that will carry Agents for Impact into the future and enable us to expand our business,” says Dr Andrij Fetsun, AFI’s CEO (pictured).

About AFI

AFI was founded in 2018 by Dr Fetsun and Ms Edda Schröder with the purpose of: (1) increasing impact investments in emerging and developing markets by building bridges between impact investors and the world of impact investing in order to enable financial inclu­sion for under­served populations across the world; and (2) contri­buting to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) with the help of the firm’s proprietary SDG rating system, the Agents for Impact Sustainability Alignment Rating (AFISAR©) Tool.

AFISAR© helps microfinance institutions (MFIs) leverage the growing importance of strong sus­tainability performance vis-à?vis international investors, particularly im­pact investors. The rating tool analyses an MFI’s operations (at both the institu­tional and portfolio levels) based on a compre­hensive set of

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Agents for Impact Sustainability Alignment Rating (AFISAR©): Applying a Gender-smart Approach in the Microfinance Sector

UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5, “Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls,” is not only a standalone goal but is inextricably linked to the other SDGs. Though moving toward gender equality has long been associated with achieving social or political goals, its proven economic benefits remain under-appreciated. Accord­ing to the World Bank’s 2021 Global Findex Database, more than 1 billion women worldwide still lack access to the financial system. In fact, wo­men make up the largest unbanked population in the world, with more than 70 percent of woman-owned small and medium-sized enterprises estimated to have inadequate or no access to financial services. The financial gap just for women-owned formal small businesses is estimated to be USD 300 billion.

In the absence of financial tools, women face difficulty generating income, boosting savings, growing businesses and improving the living conditions of their families. If the am­bitious targets set within the SDGs are to be achieved, then a concerted effort is required to

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Joy Ogutu of Agents for Impact on Impact Investing in Africa

How best to invest in Africa? What makes this region attractive to investors? This month, we introduce you to Joy Ogutu (pictured), an Africa-based Investment Officer at Agents for Impact (AFI), an impact investment company based in Ger­many. As an expert in sustainable invest­ments and impact in Africa, Joy offers us keen insight into these and other questions on sustainable growth and the current conditions in Africa.

Joy Joy Ogutuhas over 10 years of experience in the financial sector in Sub-Saharan Africa. Before joining AFI, she worked at the African Guarantee Fund, where she held the positions of Business Development Officer and Credit Officer. Her roles involved managing the guarantee cycle of financial institutions providing loans to small and medium-sized enterprises. Prior to that, she worked at Equity Bank, Ecobank and Commercial Bank of Africa (now NCBA). Her areas of expertise include deal structuring, credit risk analysis, portfolio manage­ment and relationship management. Joy is passionate about promoting sustainable development by facilitating access to finance and aiding organizations in their investment strategies. She believes that financial returns can be obtained while making a positive impact on the environment and the communities in which AFI operates.

MicroCapital: In your work in financial services, what have been the highlights? What motivates you?

Joy Ogutu: I am

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Pratibha Singh of Agents for Impact, Arunkumar Padmanabhan of Svasti Discuss the AFISAR Rating, Microfinance, Impact and Much More!

This is part of a series of features sponsored by Agents for Impact (AFI), a German impact investing firm whose products include the AFI Sustainability Alignment Rating (AFISAR©) tool. AFISAR© is a trust mark – in microfinance and other forms of social business – signifying a commitment to positive and enduring change for people and the planet, based on the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework.

AFISAR© helps MFIs leverage the market’s growing focus on sustainability performance to raise capital from international investors and, particularly, impact investors. The rating helps investors and social businesses understand their strengths and weaknesses and devise effective strategies to minimize negative impact and maximize positive impact to the benefit of the organization – its employees, clients and other stakeholders – as well as the environment.

The conversation below outlines the AFISAR© rating process carried out in the “direct partnership” format by a leading MFI like Svasti Microfinance. Direct partnership offers a conti­nu­ous and immersive experience to facilitate sustain­able transi­tions. The active dialogue and engagement embedded in the AFISAR© process enable the MFI as well as asset mana­gers to embark on a journey that leads to long-term sustainable develop­ment. AFI highly values long-term partnerships with organizations sharing our mission of achieving the UN SDGs. We take this so serious­ly that a rating above the sustain­ability threshold is required for the disbursement funds.

To date, AFI has used AFISAR© to rate 35+ microfinance and SME finance institutions in Asia, East Africa and Eastern Europe, helping the institutions demonstrate their SDG competency and alignment.

Pratibha Singh (pictured): How did you become interested in microfinance?
Arunkumar Padmanabhan: I was a lawyer and had worked for some years with ICICI Bank. Based on that experience, I wanted to set up a com­mercial business in the social impact space. We started in the slums of Mum­bai, and now we have expan­ded to eight states in India with 220,000 borrow­ers across 120 branches.

PS: What makes the Svasti model unique?
AP: The key to success in this field is based on three aspects: people, process and technology. Our vision follows the “people-first” approach. Tech­nology and innovation are driving forces as well, and we have built all of our systems from the ground up. That gives us a signifi­cant competitive advantage. Meanwhile, we have focussed on client protection and social impact from a very early stage in our develop­ment. With AFISAR©, we have become one of the few companies that is measuring its perfor­mance based on the SDGs. Constantly trying to improve in impact-driven areas is of great strategic importance.

PS: What is at stake for
by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Disburses $15m in Local Currency from IIV to MBK Ventura of Indonesia for Group Microfinance Loans for Women

Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based impact investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed a local-currency loan equivalent to USD 15 million in favor of Mitra Bisnis Keluarga (MBK) Ventura, a microlender in Indonesia, on behalf Invest in Visions (IIV). Established in 2006, MBK Ventura seeks to raise the living standards of low-income women in rural parts of the island of Java by providing access to group microloans for use as

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Measuring Impact with Agents for Impact’s AFISAR Tool

Agents for Impact: Driving Positive Impact… Together!

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) outlined by the UN in 2015 provide a blueprint for a just and sustainable world. While actors across a range of professional arenas are rushing to catch up with the SDGs, the term “impact” is being thrown around loosely to give the impression that the desired goals have been reached. It is tempting to assume certain businesses have a positive impact on the SDGs, simply based on intuition. However, some might negatively impact the SDGs or elicit both positive and negative outcomes in the long run. Without proper tools for impact measurement and assessment, we can only get so far!

Agents for Impact (AFI) understands how essential it is to improve the practice of impact measurement through stable and coherent frameworks. To deliver on this promise, we have designed a specialized investment approach to support microfinance institutions (MFIs) that exhibit strong commitment to and proven track records of progress toward the SDGs. To evaluate an MFI’s performance, AFI peels back the surface to deploy a strong assortment of cohesive and rigorous assessment tools, including financial analysis and addressing social performance indicators; sustain­ability factors; and

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Agents for Impact: Driving Positive Impact… Together!

Founded in 2018, we are a Germany-based impact investing company. Agents for Impact (AFI) offers pre­mium impact invest­ment solutions, sustainability consul­ting and impact measurement services tailor-made for clients in the sustainable finance industry.

We provide our partners with a combination of expertise and experience across the following three pillars: RISK – RATING – RESEARCH.

We have Agents spread across Africa, India, South­east Asia, Central Asia and Europe, each with in-depth technical expertise and located in close geographical proximity to our key partners and target countries to ensure optimal support.

We pride ourselves on being the partner of choice for impact investors and financial services pro­viders (FSPs) seeking innovation and cooperation. Together with these partners, we pursue positive impact, contributing

by Zach Deluca -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Loans $3m from Invest in Visions to Imon International for Microfinance in Tajikistan

Two German impact investment firms, Agents for Impact (AFI) and Invest in Visions (IIV) recently collaborated to disburse USD 3 million in loan funds to Imon International, a microfinance institution (MFI) in Tajikistan. Imon offers individuals as well as small and medium-sized enterprises loans, savings, internet banking and

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Disburses $1.5m from IIV to FINCA Bank Kyrgyzstan for Microfinance

Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based impact investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has issued USD 1.5 million to FINCA Bank Kyrgyzstan, a unit of US-based FINCA Impact Finance, on behalf of Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV). FINCA Kyrgyzstan serves 155,000 customers – half women – with

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Agents for Impact Loans $14m from IIV to Kinara Capital of India, BRAC Tanzania for Microfinance, SMEs

Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based impact investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has issued the following loans on behalf of Germany’s Invest in Visions (IIV): EUR 8 million (USD 9.2 million) to India’s Kinara Capital and USD 5 million to BRAC Tanzania Finance Limited. AFI aims to bring together investors to make progress toward the UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Kinara issues collateral-free loans to micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises. The loans, which range in size from INR 100,000 (USD 1,300) to INR 3 million (USD 40,000), are intended for purposes such as working capital and asset purchases. Although the firm promises “digital first”

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Inclusivity in Capital Markets Demands Sustainability Reporting

Sustainability reporting entails assessing, dis­closing and managing an organization’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) impacts. This prac­tice communi­cates to investors, custo­mers, employ­ees and regulators that the organization is com­mit­ted to sustainability. The dis­closure element, in particular, con­veys values, strategies, risks, oppor­tunities, account­ability and trans­par­ency.

The significance of sustain­ability re­port­ing within capital markets is increasing steadily, as more investors

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Looking Back to Plan Ahead – The Year of AFISAR

AFISAR© (the Agents for Impact Sustainability Alignment Rating) builds trust and credibility in the microfinance sector. With our part­ners, we engage in an active rating process, inspiring discussion and increasing awareness and understanding of the UN’s SDGs and envi­ronmental, social and governance (ESG) factors, taking a deep dive into the poten­tial of finance to transform people’s lives, especially the lives of mem­bers of vulnerable groups. Placing active dialogue at the centre of the AFISAR© rating process, we address sustainability with strategic decision-makers and support our partners to further align their opera­tions to the SDGs.

Having clocked five years of rating experience, culminating with the Year of AFISAR© in 2022, we would like to share some reflections:

Local presence is key Our rating team has grown bigger and stronger: we have a new colleague, Abhinav Soni, who is based in

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: AFI SDG Rating Analyst Pratibha Singh, FINCA Tajikistan CEO Sergey Kim Discuss the AFISAR Rating, Microfinance, Impact and Much More!

This is part of a series of features sponsored by Agents for Impact (AFI), a German impact investing firm whose products include the AFI Sustainability Alignment Rating (AFISAR©) Tool. The AFISAR© rating is a trust mark – in microfinance and other forms of social business – signify­ing a commitment to positive and enduring change for people and the planet based on the UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) framework.

AFISAR© helps MFIs leverage the market’s growing focus on sustainability per­formance to raise capital from inter­national investors and, particu­larly, impact investors. The rating helps investors and social businesses unders­tand their strengths and weaknesses and devise effective strategies to minimize negative impact and maximize positive impact to the benefit of the organization – its employees, clients and other stakeholders – as well as the environment.

The active dialogue and engagement embedded in the AFISAR© rating process enables the MFI as well as asset managers to embark on a journey that leads to long-term sustainable development. A rating above the sustainability threshold on the scale (see below) is favorable for the disbursement funds. To date, AFI has used the AFISAR© Tool to rate 30+ micro­finance and SME finance institutions in the Caucasus, Central and South Asia, East Africa and Eastern Europe, helping the institutions demonstrate their SDG competency and alignment.

Pratibha Singh (pictured): How did you become interested in microfinance?
Sergey Kim: My professional career started in 1998 in the field of microfinance. I was working as a loan officer for a UN microcredit project, which made it possible for me to have a close look at the ground-level realities concerning credit operations. After finishing my graduate degree, I chose FINCA because the job was close to people.

I have worked with FINCA since 2006 and have been in Tajiki­stan for the last 12 years. FINCA Tajiki­stan has been active since 2004 and is now amongst the top