Commercial banks in India reportedly are gaining interest in offering microfinance services to low-income individuals.
Category: Key Players
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: American Express to Support Financial Inclusion in USA Through Technology Startups, Research, Film
American Express, a US-based multinational financial services company, recently announced three initiatives that aim to encourage financial inclusion in the United States.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Western Union, Paga to Augment Mobile Money Transfer Services in Nigeria
The Western Union Company, a US-based financial services company, recently partnered with Paga, a Nigeria-based mobile payment platform, to launch a mobile money transfer service in Nigeria.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to Loan $7m to Enda Inter-Arabe for On-Lending to Micro-, Small Enterprises (MSEs) in Tunisia
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral financial institution, is lending TND 11 million (USD 7 million) to Enda Inter-Arabe, a Tunisian financial services provider and arm of Senegal-based non-governmental organization Enda Third-World.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CGAP Branchless Banking Challenge Fund for West Africa Accepting Entries through March 31, 2014
CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), a US-based nonprofit policy and research center that aims to facilitate the provision of financial access to poor people, is accepting applications for the Branchless Banking Challenge Fund, a contest to encourage development of innovative solutions to challenges faced by the branchless banking market in West Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) Lends $45m to FINCA Microfinance Holding to Increase Outreach, Range of Services
The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), a development finance institution of the US government, is lending USD 45 million to the Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA) Microfinance Holding (FMH), a for-profit investment vehicle controlled by US-based NGO FINCA International [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MoneyGram, Vodafone Partner to Enable Global Mobile Money Transfers Via M-Pesa
Vodafone Group, a British multinational telecommunications company, has partnered with MoneyGram, a US-based money transfer company with outlets in 200 countries, to allow MoneyGram’s customers to transfer funds to account holders of M-Pesa, a mobile money service developed by Vodafone that operates in six countries in Asia and Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), BG Kazakhstan to Extend Technical Assistance to Programme for Women, Young Entrepreneurs in Kazakhstan
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), a UK-based multilateral financial institution, has announced that it will add a second year to its effort with BG Kazakhstan, a subsidiary of UK-based oil and gas company BG Group, to support women and young entrepreneurs in the Burlinskiy district of western Kazakhstan [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Commercial Bank of Zimbabwe (CBZ) Holdings to Develop Low-Cost Housing in Zimbabwe
Commercial Bank of Zimbabwe (CBZ) Holdings, a Zimbabwe-based financial services conglomerate, recently announced that it will begin building low-cost houses in June 2014 on some of the land it owns, which is valued at a total of USD 66.7 million, with the aim of alleviating the shortage of housing facilities in Zimbabwe.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC), MobiPay to Launch “MTC Money” in Namibia
Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC), a Namibia-based mobile network operator controlled by the government-owned Namibia Post and Telecommunications Holdings and privately-owned Portugal Telecom, reportedly has partnered with the Bank of Namibia’s mobile payment service MobiPay to launch MTC Money.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Safaricom, Britam, Changmka Microinsurance to Offer Mobile Health Insurance in Kenya
Safaricom, a telecommunications provider in Kenya, reportedly has announced that it will be partnering with Britam, a Kenya-based investment firm, and Changmka Microinsurance, a Kenyan health insurance provider to offer new health microinsurance services in Kenya.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Commercial Credit and Finance of Sri Lanka Raises $12m by Selling 25% Equity Stake to Creation Investments
Commercial Credit and Finance (CCF), a Sri Lanka-based financial company, recently reached an agreement with Creation Investments Social Ventures Fund II, a private equity fund managed by US-based Creation Investments Capital Management, to raise LKR 1.68 billion (USD 12.4 million) in equity funding through an issue of 80 million new shares.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), MasterCard Partner to Support Financial Inclusion, Transparency in Latin America, Caribbean
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), a US-based multilateral financial institution that seeks to support sustainable economic growth in Latin America and the Caribbean countries, has partnered with MasterCard Incorporated, a US-based payments and technology company with operations in 210 countries and territories, to expand electronic payment systems in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) Partners with Philippines Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI) to Bring Ibdaa Microfinance Bank to Eighth Country
The Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND), a Saudi Arabia-based development organization, and the Philippines Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), a policy- and advocacy-oriented group that represents approximately 35,000 businesses in the Philippines, have signed an agreement to create an iteration of the “Ibdaa Microfinance Bank” (IMB) that is intended to increase financial inclusion of poor people and micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the Philippines [1][2].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Myanmar Mobile Money, Mobilemate Telecommunications Launch Mobile Money Services in Myanmar
Myanmar Mobile Money, a Myanmar-based subsidiary of France-based Oberthur Technologies, recently partnered with Mobilemate Telecommunications, a Singapore-based company, to launch mobile money services in Myanmar.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EcoBank to Offer Mastercard in 23 African Countries
MasterCard Incorporated, a US-based payments and technology company with operations in 210 countries and territories, reportedly has signed a deal with EcoBank Transnational Incorporated, a Togo-based bank with operations in 20 African countries, to provide MasterCard payments cards to EcoBank’s customers in 23 countries in Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Loans $20m to Microlender Enda Inter-Arabe of Tunisia
ResponsAbility Investments, a Swiss investor in microfinance and other sectors, recently notified MicroCapital that it has disbursed a loan of EUR 15 million (USD 20.4 million) to Enda Inter-Arabe, a Tunisian financial services provider that is also an arm of Senegal-based non-governmental organization Enda Third-World [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indian Court Rules Against Co-Founder of SMILE Microfinance, Leaving Control to US-Based Developing World Markets
An Indian court has denied a petition from Dr N Sethuraman, the co-founder of Semam Microfinance Investment Literacy and Empowerment (SMILE Microfinance), leaving control of the Indian microfinance institution (MFI) unchanged in the hands of Developing World Markets (DWM), a US-based investment company that has owned a stake amounting to approximately two thirds of SMILE since 2010.