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…
Category: Housing
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Africa Banking & Finance Conference; November 22-23, 2022; Nairobi, Kenya
Themed “Growth Drivers: Risks Controls,” this event will focus on increasing organizations’ ability to manage uncertainty. The draft agenda features hybrid sessions including
MICROFINANCE EVENT: MEDA Convention: Celebrating Entrepreneurship; November 2-6, 2022; Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA
With the aim of advancing the success of entrepreneurs, this event offers plenary sessions such as: (1) Revolutionizing Investment in Sub-Saharan Africa: Bridging the Finance Gap for Women Entrepreneurs; and (2) Food Security: Addressing the Risks in Our Global Food Systems and What It Means for Entrepreneurs. On November 5, the MEDAx Pitch Competition offers prizes
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC), Habitat for Humanity Partner to Bolster Housing Microfinance
The Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company (TMRC) recently signed a memorandum of understanding with US-based NGO Habitat for Humanity International to “support lower-income Tanzanians and those working in the informal sector to more easily purchase, build or upgrade their homes.” With technical assistance from Habitat for Humanity, TMRC will perform a market study and design housing microfinance products that
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Inmobiliaria Ruba Borrowing Up to $75m from IDB Invest to Increase Access to, Affordability of Housing in Mexico
IDB Invest, a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group, recently agreed to lend MXN 1.5 billion (USD 75 million) to Mexico-based housing developer Inmobiliaria Ruba to expand access to low- and middle-income housing in Mexico. Along with the funding, IDB Invest will assist Ruba in: (1) becoming less impactful on the environment; and (2) strengthening its relationships with smaller suppliers by providing them with short-term finance via “reverse factoring.” One third of the funding from IDB Invest is for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Lending $124m to Absa to Increase Access to Housing in South Africa
The World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) recently agreed to loan Absa Group Limited up to ZAR 2 billion (USD 124 million) to increase access to housing loans for “thousands” of low- and middle-income families in South Africa. In addition to its home country of South Africa,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: In $112m Deal, ADB, BII, LeapFrog, Premji Invest in Shubham Housing Development Finance of India as Elevar, Motilal Oswal Private Equity Exit
The multilateral Asian Development Bank (ADB), the UK government’s British International Investment (BII), UK-based LeapFrog Investments and India’s Premji Invest (PI) – via its PI Opportunities Fund – recently announced they have led an investment in the India’s Shubham Housing Development Finance in local currency totalling the equivalent of USD 112 million. The four investors disbursed USD 78 million to Shubham as primary capital to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: SEWA Affiliate Sitara Raises $20m in Equity from Nordic Microfinance Initiative, Women’s World Banking, Ongoing Shareholders to Improve Housing Conditions for Women in India
SEWA Grih Lin, an Indian affordable housing finance company also known as Sitara, recently raised USD 20 million in equity, including USD 8 million from the Norway-based Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI). Sitara sourced the remainder in unspecified portions from
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “The Growth and Performance of Affordable Housing Finance Lenders in India;” by Nadeem Karmali, Guillermo Rodriguez Ruiz
In studying the growth of affordable housing finance corporations (AHFCs) in India, the authors review the history of the Indian housing market and related government policies. After independence in 1947, the Indian government acted as a direct provider of housing. Since then, the government migrated its role into being a “facilitator of housing.” Starting in the 1990s,
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: Microserfin to Boost Farm Microinsurance, Microloans in Panama with $2.3m in Debt Finance from Huruma Fund
Microserfin, a lender to homeowners as well as micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Panama, recently borrowed EUR 2 million (USD 2.3 million) from Huruma Fund, a Spain-based public-private partnership supporting rural finance in low- and moderate-income countries. Microserfin, which is controlled by the Spain-based Fundación BBVA Microfinanzas, serves 14,000 clients with financial products; financial education; and access to a 24-hour hotline for assistance with health, legal, agricultural and veterinary emergencies. The microlender’s upcoming plans include
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kamyab Pakistan Offers Government Guarantees, Subsidies for Wholesale Funding of Microenterprise, Housing, Farming Loans
The government of Pakistan recently launched the Kamyab Pakistan Program, through which commercial banks and development finance institutions can bid to provide wholesale loans to retail providers of housing and microfinance loans. Successful bidders will be eligible to apply for government funds to: (1) increase the ability of retail lenders to borrow from the wholesale lenders; and (2) cover the first 10 percent of losses retail lenders may incur within the program plus half of the losses wholesale lenders may incur. Through Kamyab Pakistan, retail lenders
MICROFINANCE EVENT: FinovateFall; September 12-14, 2022; New York, NY, USA
The goal of the Finovate series is to spotlight innovations in financial technology (fintech) from startups and established leaders alike. Two days of the event will showcase 75 product demonstrations. A separate conference day will focus on selecting technologies to maximize competitiveness. While this year’s agenda has not yet been released, session titles from the 2021 conference include “Harnessing Partnerships to Drive Financial Inclusion & Improve Financial Health,” “The Future of Digital Identity Is Now,” “Harnessing AI [Artificial Intelligence] to Democratise Home Buying,” “Decentralised
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Impact Investing World Forum; April 28-29, 2022; London, UK
This conference will cover topics such as investing in gender equality and mitigating and adjusting to climate change. The speakers are to include representatives from organizations such as Big Issue, the EU, Goldman Sachs, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, UBS (Union Bank of Switzerland), and the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation. Among the session topics are “The Anatomy of a Deal During COVID-19 and Beyond,” “Investing in Housing as Part of Criminal Justice Reform,” “Impact Investing in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Symbiotics Partners with Cooperative CACPECO on $14m Bond for Housing, MSME Lending in Ecuador
Symbiotics, a Switzerland-based impact investing firm, recently partnered with Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito de la Pequeña Empresa de Cotopaxi (CACPECO), a cooperative in Ecuador, to fund it with the proceeds of a bond in the amount of USD 14 million, for a term of 4 years. The funds are to be used for: (1) housing loans with 15-year terms and interest rates of 9.9 percent per year; and (2) business loans of up to USD 1 million for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Of the MSME loans,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Trafficking Survivors to Access Microfinance from NAPTIP of Nigeria
Nigeria’s National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) recently announced it is planning to offer microfinance to survivors of human trafficking as part of a set of “sustainable and evidence-based rehabilitation, reintegration and empowerment programs.” These programs also will include
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Creation, Norwest, IIFL Place $200m in Equity in Vastu Platform Offering Housing Loans via Alternative Credit Scoring in India
Two US-based firms, Creation Investments and Norwest Venture Partners, recently co-led a Series C financing round of USD 200 million for Vastu Housing Finance of India. Each investor committed USD 75 million to Vastu, with India’s IIFL Finance investing the remaining USD 50 million. Vastu plans to use the financing to
SPECIAL REPORT: SAM (the French Acronym for African Microfinance Week) in Progress in Rwanda Until October 22, 2021
Get an overview of the five-day SAM from the ADA press release or follow the proceedings on our Twitter feed!
This feature is part of a sponsored series on the SAM 2021, which is organized by the Luxembourgish NGO ADA, the Microfinance African Institutions Network (MAIN), the African Rural and Agricultural Credit Association (AFRACA) and the Association of Microfinance Institutions in Rwanda (AMIR), with the support of the Directorate for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs of Luxembourg and the Government of Rwanda. The event is taking place from October 18 to October 22 in Kigali, Rwanda. MicroCapital has been engaged to promote and document each of the SAMs since 2015.