The Norwegian Microfinance Initiative (NMI), a partnership between the Norwegian public and private sectors that provides assistance for microfinance institutions (MFIs) in developing countries, has recently announced that its Global Fund will make an investment of EUR 4 million (equivalent to USD 5 million) in Triodos Microfinance Fund, a microfinance investment vehicle based in Luxembourg with total assets of USD 36.2 million.
Category: South Asia, East Asia and Pacific
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Private Equity Interest in Indian Microfinance Industry is Prominent Topic at Capital Markets Conference in New Delhi Sponsored by ACCION International, Citi Foundation and EDA Rural Systems
Amid increasing demand for capital in India’s microfinance industry and growing interest of equity investors, concerns exist such as valuation bubbles and whether growth can be sustained were discussed at the recent “Microfinance Cracking the Capital Markets Conference & Investment Marketplace” held in New Delhi.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indian Microfinance Nonprofit Rang De Connects Social Investors with Lenders Online
Rang De, an Indian microfinance nonprofit organization, offers an online microlending platform to provide loans to poverty-level microentrepreneurs in India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: President of Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), Mr Vijay Mahajan, Confronts “Misconceptions” About Microfinance Industry
Mr Vijay Mahajan, President of the Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), a self-regulated network organization of 39 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in India, authored an article recently published in India’s daily Economic Times addressing what he termed misconceptions about the microfinance industry.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Germany’s Environment Ministry, KfW to Launch $500m Microfinance Fund for Climate Projects in Brazil, Asia, Africa
Germany’s Federal Environment Ministry recently announced it would be launching a USD 500 million climate fund that will provide microloans for individual energy efficiency or renewables projects initially through local banks in Brazil, China, India, Indonesia, Morocco, the Philippines and South Africa.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Jordan’s Microfund for Women Launches Gender-Sensitive Microinsurance Product, Caregiver, in Partnership with Women’s World Banking (WWB)
Jordan’s Microfund for Women (MFW), a Jordanian microfinance program for women, has recently launched a microinsurance product, CareGiver, with its partner Women’s World Bank (WWB). The insurance policies are being provided to MFW borrowers, who pay a monthly premium with their loan repayment.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: PROPARCO, the Private Sector Arm of the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD), to Loan $12.5m to Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC) for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises in Sri Lanka
Promotion et Participation pour La Cooperation Economique (PROPARCO), the private sector arm of the Agence Francaise de Developpement (AFD) – a bilateral development finance institution working on the behalf of the French government – will loan EUR 10 million (USD 12.5 million) to Lanka Orix Leasing Company (LOLC), a public company based in Rajagiriya that provides leasing finance to entrepreneurs and commercial entities, in order to improve access to credit for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the North and East of Sri Lanka.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indian Microfinance Institution (MFI) Sanchetna Financial Services Receives $320,000 from Oikocredit’s Maanaveeya Holdings and Investments, Ananya Finance for Inclusive Growth and Trust MicroFin Network (TMN)
In its July 2010 newsletter, the Indian microfinance institution (MFI) Sanchetna Financial Services reported that it will be receiving a loan of INR 10 million (USD 211,000) from Maanaveeya Holdings and Investments, the Indian subsidiary of the Dutch cooperative investment fund Oikocredit. In addition, Sanchetna will receive INR 3 million (USD 64,000) from the microfinance investment vehicle (MIV), Ananya Finance for Inclusive Growth, and INR 2 million (USD 43,000) from the nonprofit trust, Trust MicroFin Network (TMN).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Nokia Launches Microfinance Scheme to Sell Mobile Phones to Poor People in Rural India
Nokia, a Finnish telecommunications company, is partnering with microfinance institutions (MFIs) to allow rural residents in the Indian states of Punjab and Haryana to use microloans to buy mobile phones. The company has already formed partnerships with several microfinance MFIs in the area, including SKS Microfinance, which is based in Hyderabad; Ujjivan, which maintains offices in Bangalore, Delhi, Kolkata and Pune; and Madura Microfinance, headquartered in Adyar. The payment scheme for the use each mobile phone will be as low as INR 100 (USD 2.14) per week.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: responsAbility Global Microfinance Fund and responsAbility Mikrofinanz-Fonds Invest $200,000 in FASO Investments and Catalyst Microfinance Investors (CMI), Which Invest in Asia and Africa
responsAbility, a Swiss-based microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) manager, recently reported to MicroCapital that it has invested USD 201,000 in equity financing from two of the funds it manages in two microfinance-focused investment firms.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Vishwavir Ahuja Joins Board of Ratnakar Bank, a Commercial Bank in Kolhapur, India
Vishwavir Ahuja, the former CEO of the Indian division of Bank of America, has joined the board of Ratnakar Bank, a community bank based in rural Kolhapur, as an independent director. According to Mr Ahuja, he hopes to transform the “relatively-unknown rural bank into a major player with a focus on inclusive growth.” Some have speculated that Mr Ahuja’s position on the board will lead to a greater influx of funding through unspecified “connections” with investors at Mumbai-based Centrum, a financial services firm established in 1977.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Grameen Capital India Appoints Sanjay Nayar as New Director
Sanjay Nayar, the CEO of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co (KKR) – a global alternative assets manager – has been named to the board of directors of Grameen Capital India, a Mumbai-based social business that promotes growth in the microfinance sector in India. Prior to joining KKR, Mr Nayar was the CEO of Citigroup India and South Asia.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mimoza Enterprises Finance (Mimo) Receives $1.5m Loan from Unitus Incorporated, US Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and Citi Microfinance
Mimoza Enterprises Finance (Mimo), an Indian microfinance institution (MFI) with a gross loan portfolio of USD 5.1 million, has received a loan of USD 1.5 million from Unitus Incorporated, an international nonprofit organization that provides funding and consulting services to microfinance institutions.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) and IFC Capitalization Fund Agree to Invest $140m in Bank South Pacific (BSP) of Papua New Guinea to Extend Financial Services in Pacific Islands
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and the IFC Capitalization Fund, a USD 3 billion global equity and subordinated debt fund, have signed an agreement to invest USD 140 million in Bank South Pacific (BSP), one of the largest commercial banks in Papua New Guinea, in an effort to expand financial services across the Pacific Islands.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Central Bank of the Philippines (BSP) Approves Increase in Ceiling for Micro Housing Loans for Rural Bankers’ Association of the Philippines (RBAP)
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Philippines, has approved an increase in the ceiling of micro housing loans disbursed by microfinance institutions (MFIs) accredited by Rural Bankers’ Association of the Philippines (RBAP), a government entity which was founded in 1955, from PHP 150,000 (equivalent to USD 3,200) to PHP 300,000 (equivalent to USD 6,400).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN) Discussion Indicates Need for Greater Focus on Rural Areas
The Pakistan Microfinance Network (PMN), an organization established in 1995 and comprised of 12 microfinance institutions (MFIs) throughout Pakistan, recently held an organized discussion regarding Pakistan’s rural finance market.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Vodafone Launches M-PAiSA Mobile Money Transfer Service in Fiji
Vodafone, a British multinational mobile network operator, has launched M-PAiSA Mobile Money Transfer service in Fiji. Initially M-PAiSA will act mainly as a vehicle for loan disbursements and repayments from microfinance institutions (MFIs), with customers being able to receive loans and make payments using their mobile phones.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Asian Development Bank Pledges $72m in Assistance to Nepal to Expand Microfinance to Rural Areas
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has agreed to provide Nepal with a loan of NPR 4.3 billion (USD 60.4 million equivalent) and a grant of NPR 870 million (USD 12.1 million equivalent) in an effort to increase access for credit to the rural poor and to women. The ADB Board of Directors approved the funding to be paid from its Asian Development Fund to finance the Nepalese Rural Finance Sector Development Cluster Program and other similar programs.