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: AXA, Acumen’s KawiSafi Lead $16m Equity, Debt Investment Round in Sistema.bio, Provider of Biogas Digesters

KawiSafi Ventures, a Kenya-based fund managed by US-based Acumen Capital Partners, and AXA IM Alts, which is controlled by France’s AXA Group, recently led an investment totaling USD 15.6 million in Sistema.bio, a Mexico-based biogas company that is active on four continents. The funding package includes

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Lazika Capital of Georgia Borrows $1.6m in Local Currency from Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation for Agricultural Lending, Microfinance

Lazika Capital, headquartered in western Georgia, has acquired loans totaling the approximate local-currency equivalent of USD 1.6 million from the Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, whose head office is in Luxembourg. Established in 2000 by the British member of the NGO Stichting Oxfam International, Lazika is a

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Furuz Microcredit of Tajikistan Borrows $560k in Local Currency from Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation

Furuz Microcredit Organization, which is headquartered in the city of Bokhtar, Tajikistan, has borrowed the equivalent of USD 560,000 in its first transaction with the Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, which is headquartered in Luxembourg. Established in 1999 as a program of the US-based NGO Millennium Relief and Development Services, Furuz offers loans for

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: M&G Acquiring Majority Stake in Impact Investment Firm responsAbility

M&G, a UK-based holding company seeking “to help our customers invest for a more sustainable future for the planet and society,” recently moved to acquire 90 percent of responsAbility Investments of Switzerland. ResponsAbility invests in low- and middle-income countries with the aim of increasing financial inclusion, supporting agriculture deemed sustainable and reducing the effects of climate change. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval, and M&G is expected to acquire

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution RENACA of Benin Borrows $1.7m from Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation

Reseau National des Caisses Villageoises d’Epargne et de Crédit Autogérées du Bénin (RENACA), a microfinance organization serving vulnerable groups in Benin, has borrowed the approximate equivalent of USD 1.7 million from the

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation Lends Kenya’s Sumac Microfinance Bank Equivalent of $2.2m in Local Currency

The Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation, a Luxembourg-based investor in “financial inclusion and entrepreneurship with social impact,” has loaned the local-currency equivalent of USD 2.2 million to

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microinvest of Moldova Borrows $3.4m from IIV for Microfinance, SME Lending

Agents for Impact (AFI), a Germany-based impact investing company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has lent the second of two tranches to Microinvest, a lender to households as well as small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Moldova, on behalf of Germany-based Invest in Visions (IIV). The disbursement of EUR 3 million (USD 3.4 million) completes an agreement between the parties valued at

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: EDPYME Alternativa of Peru Borrows $5m from Huruma Fund to Provide Farmers with Asset Finance

Huruma Fund, a Spain-based vehicle supporting rural financial services providers in low- and moderate-income countries, recently lent EUR 4 million (USD 5 million) to Entidad de Desarrollo a la Pequeña y Micro Empresa (EDPYME) Alternativa, a microfinance institution (MFI) in Peru that serves rural populations. The goal of the investment is to assist small-scale farmers through increased outreach and new products focused on farmers’ needs.

Alternativa was founded in 1992 and plans to use the new funds to issue 8,600 loans to farmers, some for fixed assets, with repayment terms as long as

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Lends $1.5m from Fairtrade Access Fund to Lafaza to Support Vanilla Farmers in Sava Region of Madagascar

Belgium’s Incofin Investment Management recently lent USD 1.5 million from the Fairtrade Access Fund (FAF) to Lafaza Trading, a company with offices in Madagascar and the US that buys vanilla and other spices “directly [from 1,000] smallholder farm owners who use organic and sustainable agricultural practices.” Lafaza works with farmers to help them

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Verdant Capital Hybrid Fund Closes with $34m from KfW to Invest in Microfinance, SME Lenders in Africa

Verdant Capital, an African corporate finance firm, recently announced the first close of its Verdant Capital Hybrid Fund (VCHF), with USD 36 million in public and private commitments. Verdant will deploy investments from VCHF to support funders of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Its goals are the “creation of employment and income generation” in keeping with “high

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Incofin Investment Management Names Buysens, Peetermans Co-CEOs

The Belgian impact investing firm Incofin Investment Management announced today that it has promoted two of its senior staff members to lead the company as co-CEOs: Paul Buysens, who joined Incofin in 2018 as its COO, and Geert Peetermans, who has 20 years of service as

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Lends $5.7m to Fin’Elle of Groupe Cofina to Support Women-led MSMEs in Agriculture Sector of Côte d’Ivoire

La Finance pour Elle (Fin’Elle), a unit of the Côte d’Ivoire-based Groupe Cofina, recently borrowed EUR 5 million (USD 5.7 million) from Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), a Dutch public-private partnership. Fin’Elle Board President Marema Bao commented that the partnership will

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Medical Credit Fund Raises $37m from the Netherlands’ Government, Philips, European DFIs to Boost Financing for SMEs to Fight Malaria, Boost Maternal Health in Africa

Medical Credit Fund (MCF), one of the four nonprofit members of the Netherlands-based PharmAccess Group, recently raised a mix of equity and debt totaling EUR 32.5 million (USD 36.7 million) to “expand the Fund’s presence and support to healthcare providers in sub-Saharan Africa.” In particular, the new funding is slated for investment in

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $5.6m to Banka per Biznes to Boost Competitiveness of SMEs in Kosovo

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a multilateral development finance institution, recently loaned EUR 5 million (USD 5.6 million) to Banka per Biznes, a commercial bank based in the city of Pristina, Kosovo. The loan is a joint initiative of EBRD and the EU under the Western Balkans SME Competitiveness Support Programme, which supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in accessing markets in the Western Balkans – and Europe in general – by encouraging investment in “environmental

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Alliance Finance Raises $15m in Debt from FMO, Enabling Microfinance Fund (EMF) to Support Lending to MSMEs in Sri Lanka

Alliance Finance, which is based in Sri Lanka, recently received a loan package of USD 15 million from Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO), a Dutch public-private partnership, and the Liechtenstein-domiciled Enabling Microfinance Fund (EMF). FMO financed two thirds of the package, and EMF provided the remaining USD 5 million. The funding is earmarked for

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Annapurna Raises $35m from Accion, Encourage Capital, Oikocredit to Support Green Microfinance, Digitalisation

Annapurna Finance, a microfinance institution (MFI) based in the Indian state of Odisha, recently raised INR 193 billion (USD 35 million) from US-based NGO Accion, US-based impact investor Encourage Capital and Dutch cooperative investor Oikocredit. The funding is to be used to boost the digitalisation of Annapurna’s operations and for developing