The Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg,
has recently announced it has provided a loan of EUR 1.2 million (USD 1.2 million) to Microinvest, a Moldova-based microfinance institution. Established in 2003 and majority-held by the Balkan Financial Sector Equity Fund, Microinvest offers
Category: Education
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Deetken Impact Fund to Focus Gender Lens on Education, Financial Inclusion, Health, Housing
Canadian asset manager Deetken Impact recently launched the Deetken Impact Alternative Finance Fund IV with a target volume of USD 100 million. Deetken plans to deploy the fund’s assets as “founder-friendly…
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Opportunity International Strengthening Financial, Training Technology in Lower-income Countries in Partnership with Krach Family Foundation, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy
Opportunity International, a US-based NGO, recently moved to strengthen the technology it uses to provide microfinance and other services in 30 countries. The goal is to help people with low incomes “make their businesses more scalable and efficient” through better access to market information, financial education, business training and financial services. These services can take the form of smartphone apps, cloud services, digital forms of identification and others. An element of achieving these goals is to boost users’ – and potential users’ – confidence in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kiva Lends $2m to Migrante, Provider of Vehicle Loans to Migrants from Venezuela to Chile
Kiva Capital, a unit of the US-based NGO Kiva, recently informed MicroCapital that it has loaned USD 2 million to Migrante, a lender to migrants and refugees in Chile, through its Kiva Refugee Investment Fund. Founded in 2018, Migrante is a financial technology (fintech) firm with 27,000 borrowers, mainly
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: LAGreen, UNEP-FI Promoting Green Bonds with Training in 8 Countries in Latin America, Caribbean
The Latin American Green Bond Fund (LAGreen), a Luxembourg-based investor in projects deemed sustainable, and the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Finance Initiative, a public-private partnership, recently delivered a training series for banks in the Dominican Republic and Latin America to encourage them to invest in bonds that fund impact-oriented projects. Examples of efforts LAGreen has funded in the past include
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Pro Mujer on “Gender-smart” Business Practices
For the latest on Pro Mujer, please refer to https://www.microcapital.org/?s=%22pro+mujer%22.
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “The Global Findex Database: Financial Inclusion, Digital Payments and Resilience in the Age of COVID-19;” by Asli Demirguc-Kunt, Leora Klapper, Dorothe Singer, Saniya Ansar
This report presents findings from a World Bank survey of approximately 125,000 adults in 123 emerging markets regarding financial inclusion. The survey was conducted during 2021 and follows analogous surveys performed in 2011, 2014 and 2017.
Account ownership among respondents in all regions has been growing rapidly, from 51 percent in 2011 to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Khushali Microfinance Bank, Sindh Graduates Association Partner on Financial, Vocational Education for Women in Rural Pakistan
Pakistan’s Khushali Microfinance Bank recently initiated a collaboration with Sindh Graduates Association (SGA), an organization mobilizing university graduates in the Pakistani province of Sindh, on a program intended to increase women’s living standards. In particular, the programme targets the female population in the Sindh village of Mirpurkhas with training in tailoring and financial topics such as how to use
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Fido of Ghana Attracts $30m Equity Package Led by Fortissimo to Expand Fintech in Africa
Ghana’s Fido Micro Credit, with the aim of expanding across Africa, recently obtained USD 30 million in Series A funding. Israel’s Fortissimo Capital led the funding round, while US-based Yard Ventures also participated, along with other unspecified private investors. Fido previously had raised
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: UNCDF, Quizrr, Ulula, Wagely Supporting Financial, Digital Literacy for Garment Workers in Bangladesh
The UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) recently committed approximately USD 556,000 to support pilot training programs for workers in the Bangladeshi garment industry. The funding will pay for technical assistance and performance-based grants for three firms seeking to promote financial and digital literacy skills and hence financial and digital inclusion for 135,000 individuals working in the sector, mostly women. UNCDF’s implementing partners for the project are
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: 60 Decibels Microfinance Index Offers Impact Data from 18k Customers of 72 MFIs
Impact-measurement firm 60 Decibels recently released data it has assembled from 18,000 clients of 72 microfinance institutions (MFIs) that serve 25 million people in 41 countries. The report is based on a survey exploring changes in factors such as income, stress level, number of employees and ease of affording loan repayments, as well as levels of MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Strategic Impact Advisors (SIA) Launches Campaign to Boost Personal, Business Financial Literacy Among Spanish-speaking Women
US-based Strategic Impact Advisors (SIA) recently released a set of free resources to deliver financial education to women in Latin America, including 22 audio lessons spanning 1 to 4 minutes in length. The lessons mainly cover topics relating to digital financial services, including using
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution Fundacion Espoir Receives $2m Investment from MicroVest, Targeting Women-led Businesses in Ecuador
MicroVest, a debt-focused asset manager owned by US-based DAI Global, recently agreed to lend USD 2 million to Ecuador’s Fundacion Espoir, an NGO providing microcredit, insurance and financial education. The goal is to support Fundacion Espoir in assisting women-led micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in recovering from the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic and
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) Accepting Applications for “Catapult: Kickstarter” Fintech Development Programme
Catapult: Kickstarter, a two-week programme organized by the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology (LHoFT) Foundation, aims to aid financial technology (fintech) startups with tutorials, networking and mentorship on issues such as creating a business plan, managing risk and growing the business. The organizers will select 10 fintechs to participate in the program, which will run from June 20 to July 1, 2022. On the closing day, the participants will
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BBVA Global Financial Education Plan Seeks to Reach 50m People
Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA), a global financial services group based in Spain, recently updated its Global Financial Education Plan, seeking to engage 1 million additional people in training sessions and provide related online material to a further 50 million people over the course of three years. The content aligns with
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: “Digital Pro Mujer” Offers Financial Education, Digital Literacy Training, Mentoring, Loans, Mobile Money to Women in Latin America
The US-based social enterprise Pro Mujer recently launched “Digital Pro Mujer,” targeting southeastern Mexico, but open to women entrepreneurs and employees across Latin America. The platform offers a range of services, including digital wallets as well as virtual education and mentoring to help users develop digital and financial skills. The digital wallets offer services such as savings
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Better Practice Guidance on Women’s Digital Financial Capability,” Published by Center for Financial Inclusion at Accion
This paper addresses methods for increasing women’s “ability to access, manage, understand, integrate, evaluate and use financial services offered through digital technologies.” The digitalization of financial services and products is becoming increasingly prevalent, including in parts of the world that are underserved by traditional banks. Investing in building women’s digital financial capability can play a significant role in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Study-abroad Firm Leverage Edu Facilitating Student Access to Finance, Banking Services, Cross-border Remittances
Leverage Edu, which offers platforms for students in India looking to study in other countries, recently launched Leverage Finance, a unit facilitating loans to pay for tuition, cross-border remittances, and remote opening of bank accounts in countries to which students will travel for their education. During the pilot phase of the service, Leverage Finance customers accessed loans totaling INR 750 million (USD 10 million) and opened approximately 500 accounts at banks in Canada and the UK. Going forward, the firm plans to: