“We expect the loan growth to double or triple over the next six months and for Korea to have the world’s largest microfinance program by next year,” says Kwon Hyouk Se, vice chairman of the Financial Services Commission in Korea. [1]
Category: South Asia, East Asia and Pacific
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Lends $3.14m in Local-currency to Nine Indian Microfinance Institutions
Oikocredit, a microfinance investment fund in the Netherlands with assets of USD 665 million, recently loaned INR 145 million (USD 3.14 million) to nine Indian microfinance institutions (MFIs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Loans $1.37m to Seven Microfinance Institutions in Bulgaria, Asia and Africa
Oikocredit, a microfinance investment fund in the Netherlands with assets of USD 665 million, recently loaned USD 1.37 million to seven microfinance institutions (MFI) in Bulgaria, Tajikistan, Benin, the Philippines and Ghana.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BlueOrchard Commits $4m in Debt Capital to Microfinance Projects in Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Jordan
BlueOrchard Finance, a Swiss asset management company, recently informed MicroCapital that it has provided USD 4 million in loans from two funds it manages, the Dexia Micro Credit Fund and the Microfinance Enhancement Facility, to three Asian microfinance organizations. Frontiers, a microfinance investment vehicle (MIV) in Kyrgyzstan, will receive USD 500,000. The Eskhata Bank in Tajikistan will receive USD 2 million. The Middle East Micro Credit Company (MEMCO) in Jordan will receive USD 1.5 million.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Second Annual Unitus-Hewitt Compensation And Benefits Survey of Indian Microfinance Institutions Demonstrates Salary Stability
The Unitus-Hewitt Compensation And Benefits Survey, released in early June, has demonstrated stability in the microfinance industry during the 2009 economic crisis. The study examined cash and non-cash benefits at 15 microfinance institutions (MFIs) representing 10 million clients across India. The study was jointly executed by Unitus Inc., an international nonprofit providing funding and consulting services to MFIs, and Hewitt Associates, an international human resources consulting firm.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Aditya Birla Finance (ABF) Enters Wholesale Microfinance Sector in India
Aditya Birla Finance (ABF), a non-banking financial company (NBFC) in India, has entered into the microfinance sector and has already closed a bulk financing deal with an unnamed Hyderabad-based microfinance institution (MFI). ABF is currently looking to form financing partnerships with other MFIs throughout the country.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Invests $6.8m in Local-currency Loans in Three Indian Microfinance Institutions
Oikocredit, a microfinance investment fund in the Netherlands with assets of USD 665 million, recently loaned INR 315 million (USD 6.8 million) to three Indian microfinance institutions (MFIs): Cashpor, SMILE and Grameen FSPL (Grameen Koota).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Two Thirds of Philippine Households Lack Bank Accounts, Says Central Bank Official
Two thirds of Philippine households, an estimated 11 million, do not have bank accounts, according to Mr Amando Tetangco, the Governor of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Republic of the Philippines.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) Plans to Open Rural Credit Bureaus in India
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), a development bank in India that promotes sustainable agriculture and rural development through credit support, institution building and other related services, plans to set up rural credit bureaus in rural districts throughout the country. According to Dr K.G. Karmakar, the managing director of NABARD, “Once implemented, [the credit bureaus] will go a long way in improving the financial position of India’s 480 million marginal farmers.” The proposed bureaus would maintain information on all rural borrowers in order to facilitate credit and information disbursement.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Philippines Partners with Key2Flex to Develop Microfinance Geographic Information System
The People’s Credit and Finance Corporation (PCFC), a Philippines government entity providing resources to retail microfinance institutions, has recently entered into a partnership with Key2Flex, an information technology company focused on rich internet applications, to assist with PCFC’s development of a geographic information system.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Indian Microfinance Institution Ujjivan Financial Services Reduces Interest Rates, Following Lead of Bandhan Financial Services Private Limited
Ujjivan Financial Services, an Indian microfinance institution, announces that it will reduce borrowing rates on new and renewal loans by 190-290 basis points. As a result, new business loans will cost 23 percent per annum and renewal loans will cost 22 percent per annum beginning in July 2010. As MicroCaptial reported on May 4, 2010, Bandhan Financial Services Private Limited, another Indian microfinance institution, reduced its annual rates on loans possibly triggering the Ujjivan reduction.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Opportunities (MFO) and The MasterCard Foundation Announce Partnership with Financial Information Networks and Operation (FINO) of India and The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) for Branchless Banking Program
The MasterCard Foundation, a private foundation with approximately CAD 3 billion (the equivalent of USD 2.9 billion) in assets, and Microfinance Opportunities (MFO), a microenterprise resource center established in 2002, have selected two companies in Asia to participate in their Financial Education for Branchless Banking Program.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation to Acquire 20% Stake in India-Based Microfinance Institution Swadhaar FinServe (SPFL)
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, recently announced plans to acquire a 20 percent stake in Swadhaar FinServe (SPFL), a non banking financial company that caters to India’s urban poor, for USD 2.25 million.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global Microfinance India Summit 2010, November 15-16, 2010 in New Delhi, India, Organized by ACCESS Development Services
Event Name: Global Microfinance India Summit 2010
Event Date: November 15 to November 16, 2010
Event Location: New Delhi, India, Hotel Ashok
See Our Comprehensive Event Calendar Here: http://microfinanceassociation.ning.com/events
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: International Finance Corporation (IFC) Purchases 10 Percent Stake in Nirdhan Bank Ltd, a Microfinance Bank in Nepal
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has announced that it plans to purchase a 10 percent stake in Nirdhan Utthan Bank Ltd, a microfinance institution in Nepal with a gross loan portfolio of USD 12.1 million and 68,203 active borrowers [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Considering Increase in Microfinance Loan Cap
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), the central bank of the Republic of the Philippines, has announced that it is considering raising the maximum microfinance loan size of PHP 150,000 (USD 3,200) to better serve small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). BSP recognizes 214 microfinance banks in the Philippines, with outstanding loans of PHP 6.4 billion (USD 137 million) to 900,000 microentrepreneurs [1]. BSP states that SMEs make up 99.7 percent of all registered companies, account for 70 percent of all jobs and manufacture 30 percent of Filipino goods.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Bank Approves $300m Loan to Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and $107m to Indian Government to Improve Statistics
The World Bank has approved a USD 300 million loan from the Scaling Up Sustainable and Responsible Microfinance Project to the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and a USD 107 million loan from the Statistical Strengthening Loan Program to the national government of India [1].
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Finance Minister of India Asks Insurance Agencies to Provide Microinsurance in Rural Areas
Pranab Makherjee, Finance Minister of India, has asked insurance agencies to provide more microinsurance services to people living in rural areas. He made this request when speaking at an inaugural ceremony for the Insurance Institute of India, formerly known as The Federation of Insurance Institutes.