Md Shafiqual Haque Choudhury, who founded the Association for Social Advancement (ASA), an NGO in Bangladesh, and co-founded the Netherlands-based ASA International, recently died. He launched ASA in 1978 to promote civil rights and social development in rural Bangladesh. In 1992, ASA transformed into
Category: Key Players
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: The Currency Exchange Fund (TCX) Raises $200m in Equity from EU, IFC, KfW, PROPARCO to Manage FX Risk for Microfinance, Other Impact Investments
The Currency Exchange Fund (TCX) recently raised a total of USD 200 million in equity financing that it will use to lower the foreign-exchange risk of third-party impact investments in developing nations. TCX hedges emerging-market currencies to support investments
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Private Asset Impact Fund Report 2020;” by Basile Quartier, Brendan Mackinnon, Ramkumar Narayanan; Published by Symbiotics
This survey reports on private asset impact funds (PAIFs), which are defined as those that have most “of their non-cash asset [base] allocated both to private debt and/or private equity instruments and to emerging and frontier markets, with a development impact bias.” When referring to impact, Symbiotics focuses on the
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroEnsure, STP, TonkaBI Merge into “MicroInsurance Company,” Leveraging Straight-through Processing, Artificial Intelligence to Expand Access
Seeking to expand access to microinsurance for both individuals and businesses, UK-based companies MicroEnsure and TonkaBI along with the US-based STP Group recently merged to form the MicroInsurance Company (MIC). The new firm describes itself as “the first global end-to-end digital micro insurance solution,” benefitting from the three firms’ “reinsurance capacity, in-country insurance licenses, world-class distribution and market-leading artificial intelligence functionality.” STP Group brings the new company its straight-through processing (STP) methodology, which
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: African Development Bank (AfDB) Joins NASDAQ Sustainable Bonds Network with 10 Listings, Including “Fight COVID-19 Social Bond”
The African Development Bank (AfDB), a multilateral institution that works to alleviate poverty in Africa, recently joined the NASDAQ (National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) Sustainable Bonds Network (NSBN), an online platform promoting bonds that fund projects addressing the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. As of July 2020, 10 of AfDB’s bonds are
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Central Bank of Solomon Islands, IFC Developing Comprehensive Credit Reporting System to Boost Financial Inclusion of Individuals, MSMEs
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently signed an agreement with the Central Bank of Solomon Islands (CBSI) that is intended to improve the country’s “credit reporting legal framework,” promote financial inclusion and protect the credit reputations of borrowers during the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of the effort, CBSI will begin supervising the Solomon Islands Credit & Data Bureau (CDB), and IFC will assist the credit bureau in implementing
MICROFINANCE EVENT: The Economic Impact of COVID-19: Results of a Global Survey of Microfinance Customers; July 16, 2020; Webinar Hosted by FINCA
This online event will showcase the results of a survey of 5,000 microborrowers in Africa, Eurasia and Latin America regarding the “economic impacts of COVID-19” on their livelihoods. Two representatives of FINCA International will open the webinar, Scott Graham, the Director of Customer Research, and Anahit Tevosyan, the
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “2020 Annual Impact Investor Survey,” by Dean Hand et al, published by the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN)
The 10th edition of this survey includes responses from 294 impact investors, those that seek to “generate positive, measurable social and environmental impact alongside a financial return.” From the data the authors have collected, they reach the following conclusions:
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: 26 Inclusive Finance Players Pledge to Support Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), Clients Throughout Pandemic
At the initiative of the Luxembourg-based Grameen Crédit Agricole (GCA) Foundation, microfinance lenders and other operators in the inclusive finance sector have agreed to a set of “Key Principles to Protect Microfinance Institutions and Their Clients in the COVID-19 Crisis.” The commitment involves measures including: operating in a customer-centric manner, protecting staff members, sharing
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MIX Becoming Part of Accion’s Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI)
On June 1, 2020, MIX, the US-based NGO formerly known as the Microfinance Information Exchange, will become a unit of Accion’s Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) with the mission of performing “data-driven research that supports the decision-making of key stakeholders, including financial service providers [FSPs], investors, donors, regulators and policymakers” in order “to improve the lives of the 3 billion financially underserved people globally.” The transition
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: 9 Microfinance Investment Vehicles Coordinate Response to Effects of Pandemic on MFIs, MSMEs in 80 Countries
The COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to reduce its health impacts have had major negative economic consequences for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). These enterprises thus are having difficulty repaying the loans they have outstanding from microfinance institutions (MFIs) and other retail lenders, leading to liquidity challenges for these lenders. In response, nine investors in these lenders, which have an aggregate of USD 15 billion invested in 80 low- and middle-income countries, are working together to support the long-term viability of the retail financial services providers (FSPs).
The nine investors, which manage a range of microfinance investment vehicles (MIVs) and other funds seeking to generate positive social impact, have arrived at a non-binding agreement to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Bank to Loan $300m to Indonesia for Financial Sector Reform, Including Promoting Long-term Savings, Disaster Microinsurance
The World Bank recently agreed to loan USD 300 million to the government of Indonesia for “financial sector reforms that will help sustain economic growth and achieve the country’s shared prosperity goals.” Planned strategies include increasing the range of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IFC Boosts COVID-19 Response to $8b for Working Capital, Risk-sharing, Trade Finance, “Real Sector” Finance Worldwide; Including $294m Deployed to Target SMEs in Vietnam
The World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) recently increased to USD 8 billion its financial commitment to counter the effects of COVID-19. David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, said, “It’s essential that we shorten the time to recovery.” He added, “Support operations are already underway, and the expanding funding tools…will help sustain economies, companies and jobs.”
The funding package is divided into four categories, with USD 2 billion allocated each to: (1) cash for
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Development Finance Institutions Collaborate to Add Gender Metrics to Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) IRIS+ System
A group of development finance institutions (DFIs) recently collaborated with the US-based nonprofit Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) to improve the way they track the results of their investments in women in developing countries. The outcome is an expansion of GIIN’s Impact Reporting and Investment Standards Plus (IRIS+), which provides a framework to “identify, measure and manage the social and environmental impact of investors’ actions and report their impact” as well as provide investors with “impact data” that can inform their investment decisions.
The new metrics are grouped into approaches such as gender-specific services; increasing equality through financial inclusion; and
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Commits $1.1b as “First Step” in Response to Coronavirus; Targets Include SMEs, Women-owned businesses
The UK-based multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently allocated EUR 1 billion (USD 1.1 billion) to provide “immediate support” as a “first step” to addressing disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The targets include boosting trade finance, particularly as it can assist small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and providing crisis-management advice to SMEs, especially those led by women. For borrowers experiencing difficulty with repayment, EBRD will
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BNP Paribas Loans $9.4m to CreditAccess Grameen of India for Microfinance
BNP Paribas, a bank based in France, recently informed MicroCapital that it has disbursed a two-year loan of INR 700 million (USD 9.4 million) to CreditAccess Grameen, the Indian member of CreditAccess Asia, which operates microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India, Indonesia and the Philippines. CreditAccess Grameen, formerly known as Grameen Koota, offers group microenterprise loans of USD 1,150; individual small business loans of up to
SPECIAL REPORT: European Microfinance Week to Run November 18 – 20, 2020; Including $110k European Microfinance Award for Innovation in Savings; Applications to Open in March
The 
European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) will hold the next European Microfinance Week from November 18 through November 20, 2020, in Luxembourg. The first day of the event will include training opportunities as well as meetings of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) Launches, Combining Efforts of OPIC, USAID’s DCA with Investment Cap of $60b to Focus on Low-income, Lower Middle-income Countries
The government-backed US International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) recently launched with goals to “help businesses expand into emerging markets, foster growth and improve lives in the developing world, while reinforcing US foreign policy and national security interests.” DFC is taking over the work of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, which had similar goals and an investment cap of USD 29 billion, and the