Opportunity International, a US-based nonprofit organization that provides financial services to poor people in 24 countries, recently announced that Caterpillar Foundation, the philanthropic arm of US-based equipment manufacturer Caterpillar Inc., has granted Opportunity two multi-year donations totaling USD 19.2 million [1].
Category: Deals
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sanad Fund for MSME to Loan $2m to Al Majmoua of Lebanon for Microenterprises
The Sanad Fund for MSME (micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises), an initiative that invests in financial institutions in the Middle East and North Africa, recently agreed to grant a senior loan facility of USD 2 million to Al Majmoua, a Lebanese nongovernmental organization (NGO) that lends to microenterprises.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FINCA Becomes Majority Shareholder of Kashf Microfinance Bank of Pakistan with $8.4m Investment
Kashf Microfinance Bank Limited (KMBL), a Pakistan-based microfinance bank (MFB), recently announced an equity injection of PKR 824.7 million (USD 8.4 million) from FINCA Microfinance Coöperatief U.A., a Netherlands-based entity controlled by US-based NGO FINCA International.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU) Receives $2.45m from UN’s MicroLead for Liberia Credit Union National Association
The World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), a US-based association of credit union trade groups in 54 countries, recently received a four-year, USD 2.45 million grant from the United Nations Capital Development Fund’s (UNCDF’s) MicroLead program that it will direct to its new member organization, the Liberia Credit Union National Association (LCUNA), a network of 300 credit unions in Liberia that serve 36,000 individuals.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives, Habitat for Humanity Thailand, Citi Foundation Launch “Microsavings Program for Home Improvement”
Executive Vice President Somsak Kangteerawat of the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Co-operatives (BAAC), a government-owned bank in Thailand that extends credit to farmers, and Board Chairman Piriyah Wisedjinda of Habitat for Humanity (HFH) Thailand, a branch of the US-based NGO HFH International, have signed a memorandum of understanding establishing the “Microsavings Program for Home Improvement”, which is intended to support home improvements for low-income families living in areas of Thailand that are prone to flooding.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: ICICI Bank, Vodafone Bring M-Pesa Mobile Money Service to India
Vodafone Group Private Limited Corporation, a British multinational mobile network operator, and the ICICI Bank, a commercial bank in India, have announced that they have expanded Vodafone’s mobile pesa (M-Pesa) cash transfer service to India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development May Offer $40m in Subordinated Debt to Turkey-based Fibabanka
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral institution headquartered in London that aims to finance operations that are both commercially viable and assist development, has announced that it is considering granting subordinated debt of EUR 30 million (USD 39.6 million) to Fibabanka A.S., a private bank based in Turkey, with the aim of supporting growth of the Turkish micro-, small and medium-sized enterprise (MSME) sector.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Loans $70m to SB Sberbank of Kazakhstan to Support Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs)
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently announced that it would loan the local-currency equivalent of USD 70 million to Subsidiary Bank Sberbank of Russia Joint Stock Company (SBK) in Kazakhstan, a subsidiary of government-owned Sberbank of Russia, in an effort to increase financial access for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kazakhstan [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Arranges $470m in Loans for Itau Unibanco of Brazil for Women Entrepreneurs, Funded by Bank of America, Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Development Bank of Japan
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the US-based World Bank Group, recently announced it will disburse a local-currency loan equivalent to USD 470 million to Itau Unibanco, a Brazilian bank, in an effort to increase the financial inclusion of women-owned enterprises in Brazil.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC), European Investment Bank (EIB), Agence Française de Développement (AFD), European Commission Establish $380m Middle East, North Africa Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises Facility
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently announced that it is partnering with the European Investment Bank (EIB), the long-term lending bank of the European Union (EU); Agence Française de Développement (AFD), France’s international development agency; and the European Commission, the legislative body of the EU, via the Neighborhood Investment Facility (NIF), to establish a USD 380 million financing facility for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Considering $78m Facility for Sekerbank of Turkey for Micro-, Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises
The UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently revealed the pending approval of a EUR 60 million (USD 78 million) finance facility for Sekerbank T.A.S., a Turkish commercial bank.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: UT Bank Ghana Receives $20m Credit Line from African Development Bank to Support Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises
The Board of Directors of the African Development Bank (AfDB), a multilateral institution that provides loans and grants to governments and private companies in Africa, recently approved a 3.5-year line of credit in the amount of USD 20 million to UT Bank Ghana Limited (UT Bank), a commercial bank based in Ghana with 26 branches in Ghana and an unavailable number of subsidiary branches in West Africa and Europe.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tigo Ghana, EB Accion, Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, USAID to Help Women Become Mobile Money Agents
The Ghanaian branch of Luxembourg-based telecommunication firm Millicom International Cellular, which is also known as Tigo and has operations in 15 African and Latin American countries; EB Accion, a Ghana-based microfinance institution (MFI) affiliated with Togo-based Ecobank Group and US-based non-governmental organization (NGO) Accion; Cherie Blair Foundation for Women, a London-based charity focused on technology and access to finance; and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), a government agency that provides international economic and humanitarian assistance, reportedly have partnered on a mobile money project that is expected to involve hundreds of women in Ghana.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Loans $2.6m to Mobiasbanca – Groupe Société Générale of Moldova for Residential Energy Efficiency
In an effort to boost residential energy efficiency in Moldova, the UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently loaned EUR 2 million (USD 2.6 million) to Mobiasbanca, a Moldovan commercial bank and subsidiary of France-based Groupe Société Générale SA, to be on-lent to individual households, housing associations, management companies, condominiums and energy service companies.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) May Back $50m Foundations Fund 1.0 for Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises in Romania
The UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently revealed its expected approval of an equity investment of up to EUR 15 million (USD 19.5 million) in The Foundations Fund 1.0, a Luxembourg-based corporate partnership fund, in an effort to foster capital equity investments in Romanian small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that lead to multi-sector growth.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Equity Bank, Google Announce BebaPay Card for Paying Bus Fares in Kenya
In partnership with Google, a US-based provider of technology products and services, Equity Bank, a private bank based in Kenya, has announced that the bank will be offering a new cashless payment card system called BebaPay, which is expected to enable users to pay bus fares without the use of cash.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to Loan $10m to KazMicroFinance of Kazakhstan for Micro-, Small, Medium-Sized Enterprises in Rural Areas
The UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will loan the local-currency equivalent of USD 10 million to KazMicroFinance (KMF), a Kazakhstan non-banking financial institution, in an effort to increase access to credit for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises in rural areas of the country [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Australia Donates $6m to Laos-Focused “Making Access to Finance More Inclusive for Poor People” Programme of the United Nations
The government of Australia has committed a donation of USD 6.15 million to support the United Nations Development Cooperation Forum (UNDCF) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in their joint programme titled “Making Access to Finance More Inclusive for Poor People” (MAFIPP), which is implemented by the Bank of Lao People’s Democratic Republic (BLPDR), the central bank of Laos, with the aim of improving poor rural household access to a variety of financial services.