Zafén, a partnership of four organizations from three countries, is launching an internet portal to collect donations and fund microloans that will be disbursed to businesses and organizations in Haiti that Zafén has determined will improve the community [1]. The Vincentian Family, a non-profit charitable network operating in more than 135 countries, is funding the venture with members of the Chicago-based DePaul University faculty developing the website and lending criteria. Fonkoze, a Haitian microfinance institution established in 1995 [2], and The Haitian Hometown Associations Resource Group, an international organization representing the Haitian diaspora, are acting as advisors to the program [3].
Category: Latin America & Caribbean
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) and Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC), a Member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Provide $27m in Equity to QBE del Istmo Compañía de Reaseguros, a Panama-based Reinsurance Company, to Expand into Microinsurance and Health Insurance
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the investment arm of the World Bank, and the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC), a member of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) that helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) gain access to finance, will make equity investments totaling USD 27 million in QBE del Istmo Compañía de Reaseguros, a Panama-based reinsurance company, to cover new products such as microinsurance and health insurance as well as increase its capital base, improve corporate governance standards and expand operations.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Women’s World Banking’s (WWB) Center for Microfinance Leadership and University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business Host Advanced Leadership Course
Women’s World Banking (WWB), an organization that provides technical and advisory services to its global network of microfinance institutions (MFIs), has partnered with Wharton’s Aresty Institute for Executive Education to host its first advanced leadership course for microfinance professionals in March.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Financiera Independencia, a Mexico-based Microfinance Institution, Sells $200m in Senior Guaranteed Notes to the International Market
Financiera Independencia, a Mexico-based microfinance institution (MFI) that is listed on the Mexican Stock Exchange, has announced that it has successfully placed USD 200 million in senior guaranteed notes in the international market.
MEET THE BOSS: Nanno Kleiterp of the Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO)
The Netherlands Development Finance Company (FMO) is the international development bank of the Netherlands. FMO uses loans, mezzanine financing and equity investments to invest in financial institutions and other companies in developing countries. With an investment portfolio of USD 6.5 billion, FMO is one of the world’s largest bilateral private sector development banks. FMO’s mission is to create flourishing enterprises that can serve as engines of sustainable growth in their countries.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Investors Launch Microfinance Growth Fund (MIGRoF), a Lending Facility for Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in Latin America and the Caribbean
The Inter-American Development Bank’s (IDB’s) Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), a fund that finances micro- and small enterprises (MSEs); the Inter-American Investment Corporation (IIC), a member of the IDB that helps small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) gain access to finance; and the Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF), an institution that mobilizes financial resources in Latin America, recently launched the Microfinance Growth Fund (MIGRoF), a facility expected to provide the equivalent of USD 250 million in medium- and long-term loans to microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Latin America and the Caribbean.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Changes to Brazilian Development Bank’s (BNDES’s) Microcredit Program Aims to Double Number of Disbursements and Expand Microfinance Portfolio by 50% in Next Two Years
The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), a federal public finance company, recently announced changes to its microcredit program that could double the number of disbursements to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and expand its portfolio by 50 percent from BRL 80 million (the equivalent of USD 44.4 million) to BRL 120 million (the equivalent of USD 66.6 million).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroFinance Transparency Receives Ford Foundation Grant to Promote Transparency in Latin American Microfinance Industry
MicroFinance Transparency (MFTransparency), a US-based non-governmental organization that aims to disseminate accurate and comparable microfinance product cost information, has received a grant from the Ford Foundation to expand its work in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Savings Bank Institute (WSBI) Issues “Open Message” to Promote Access to Finance to Reach United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)
The World Savings Bank Institute (WSBI), an international banking association, has issued an open message promoting access to finance as a means to accelerate progress toward the United Nation’s Millenium Development Goals (MDGs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) Releases 2009 Benchmarking Report on Latin America and Caribbean Region
The nonprofit Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) has released the 2009 Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) Microfinance Analysis and Benchmarking Report in English and Spanish.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Wall Street Journal Article Examines “Profit Versus Purpose” Debate in Microfinance Industry
A recent article featured on the Wall Street Journal website entitled “Microfinance’s Midlife Crisis” examines the underpinnings of the debate in the microfinance industry about profit versus purpose.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Elevar Equity, a Bangalore-based Private Equity Fund, Raises $70m for Microfinance-focused Fund for Investments in India, Mexico, the Philippines and Peru
Elevar Equity Advisors Private Limited (Elevar), a Bangalore-based private equity fund, has raised a USD 70 million fund that will invest in microfinance and other services in India, Mexico, the Philippines and Peru.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institution (MFI) Equity Valuations Rise in 2009 as Portfolio Quality Falls, Says Report by JP Morgan and CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor)
A new report by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) and JP Morgan shows that despite the global financial crisis, microfinance institution (MFI) equity valuations continued to rise across all regions during 2009.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) Releases Third Annual Global Ranking of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)
The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), the microfinance information clearinghouse, recently released its third annual ranking of microfinance institutions (MFIs), The Mix Global 100.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC), IBM and Republic Bank Launch Software Platform for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises in Guyana
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group; IBM, a multinational computer corporation based in the United States; and Republic Bank Ltd., a commercial bank in the Caribbean, recently launched a free, online platform that aims to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) improve their performance.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Fundacion Mundo Mujer (FMM) to Become Regulated Financial Institution in Colombia Specializing in Microfinance with $6m Loan from International Finance Corporation (IFC)
he International Finance Corporation (IFC), the lending arm of the World Bank, recently announced that it would provide advisory services and a USD 6 million loan to Fundacion Mundo Mujer (FMM), a Colombian nongovernmental organization (NGO) that offers microcredit services, in order to help FMM transform into a regulated financial institution.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Financiera Independencia, a Microfinance Institution (MFI) Located in Mexico, Will Submit Request to Receive Banking License
Financiera Independencia, a microfinance institution (MFI) located in Mexico, has announced that on February 24, 2010, its Board of Directors authorized the MFI to submit a request to receive a banking license, thus allowing it to offer a wider range of products and services as well as to receive funding from retail deposits.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Compartamos Banco, a Mexican Microfinance Bank, Reports 33% Increases in Net Income and Total Loan Portfolio for 2009
Compartamos Banco, a Mexican microfinance bank, reports that both its net income and its total loan portfolio increased by 33 percent in 2009. Fernando Alvarez Toca, the CEO of Compartamos Banco, reflected upon 2009 as “one of the most challenging years in Compartamos’ history” due to the global downturn [1].