by Rohit Dayanand -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Baab Mobile Money App Combines Cryptocurrency, Traditional Financial Accounts

UK-based Babb Group recently launched its eponymous mobile money app, which offers money transfers as well as the option to store funds as “decentralized crypto, backed stable-coins, and regulated fiat money” and convert among these options. Babb’s Currency X is one such “stable coin,” which is

by Ben Barba -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Lidya to Shift from Retail Lending to Providing Fintech Infrastructure

Lidya, a US-based financial technology (fintech) firm that has provided digital loans in Nigeria, the Czech Republic and Poland, recently announced it will shift its focus to providing technology infrastructure to financial institutions. Lidya’s credit platform helps lenders “originate, manage and collect loans,” including via the Collect tool, which is intended to

by Vaughn Rajah -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Equity for Tanzania, New Holland to Lease Tractors to Small-scale Farmers

The Italy-based equipment manufacturer New Holland recently collaborated with leasing company Equity for Tanzania (EFTA) to deliver 200 tractors to Tanzania in an effort to enhance mechanization among small-scale farmers, improve agricultural productivity and strengthen food security. The effort includes

by Vaughn Rajah -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Impacts of Microcredit Access on Climate Change Adaptation Strategies Adoption and Rice Yield in Kwara State, Nigeria,” by Adejoke Yewande Bakare et al

Because 70 percent of Nigeria’s population is active in agriculture as a primary occupation, climate change has a direct impact on the livelihoods of most people in the country. Access to microcredit can

by Ben Barba -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Credolab, Provenir Seek to Boost Financial Inclusion with Predictive Software

Two financial technology (fintech) companies, Singapore-based Credolab and US-based Provenir, recently formed a partnership intended to increase financial inclusion. Provenir, which provides a “unified risk decisioning solution” for lenders, will offer its clients the

by Renata Samadova -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN) Impact Forum; October 4-5, 2023; Copenhagen, Denmark

This event will address sustainable development via impact investing. The agenda offers sessions including: (1) Impact Analytics, Predictive and Optimization tools: What Does “Good” Impact Look Like?; (2) Designing the Future of

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: FinovateFall; September 11-13, 2023; New York, NY, USA

This event offers two days with approximately 60 demos of new technologies followed by a day of conference sessions. There are also two levels of programming for startups – one for those still developing their business models and another for those ready to solicit funding – as well as a scholarship program for “underrepresented founders and startups tackling climate change, diversity, and financial inclusion.”

While this year’s agenda has not yet been released, session titles from last year’s conference included:

by Vaughn Rajah -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: AgCelerant, Bank of Africa, IFC to Support Rice Value Chains in Senegal with Access to Loans, Insurance, Tools, Inputs

AgCelerant, the agricultural technology (agritech) service of Mauritius-based Manobi Africa, recently partnered with the Senegalese unit of the Bank of Africa Group and the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC) on an effort to

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Navigating the Future of Impact Investing in Asia; May 9, 2023; Hong Kong, China

Attendees at this conference will debate investing “with the intention to generate social and environmental impact alongside a financial return” in Asia and worldwide. The topics to be covered include: 1) the current status of the sector; 2) methods for

by Renata Samadova -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Lab Accepting Applications from Entrepreneurs in Latin America, Caribbean for WeXchange Women STEMpreneurs Competition, Partner of Google for Startups, Through March 31

WeXchange, a program of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) Group’s IDB Lab, recently started accepting applications from female entrepreneurs in Latin America and the Caribbean for the WeXchange Women STEMpreneurs Competition. The competition targets women whose businesses

by Vaughn Rajah -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Accion, Sturgeon Lead $6.4m Equity Round for Trukkr, Fintech Serving Trucking SMEs in Pakistan

Trukkr, a Pakistan-based financial technology (fintech) firm, recently obtained USD 6.4 million in a funding round led by two impact investors, US-based Accion Venture Lab and UK-based Sturgeon Capital, with placements also made by Al Zayani Venture Capital, Haitou Global and Peter Findley. The breakdown

by Renata Samadova -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Arohan of India Raises $11m in Equity from FMO to Expand Microfinance, Including via Technology

Arohan Financial Services, an India-based microfinance institution (MFI) offering credit and insurance services to groups, individuals and other MFIs, recently accepted an equity investment in local-currency equivalent to USD 11 million from the Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO). Arohan plans to use the fresh capital

by Vaughn Rajah -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Semaai Raises Equity from Accion, XA Network, Beenext, Surge for Technology Supporting Farmers, Agricultural MSMEs in Indonesia

Semaai, an Indonesia-based agricultural technology firm, recently obtained bridge funding in an equity raise led by Accion Venture Lab, a unit of US-based nonprofit Accion, and XA Network, a Singapore-based venture capital firm, with ongoing investors Beenext and Surge increasing their exposure to Semaai. Although the amount invested by each party has not been released, the goal

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: ¡Viva el Cooperativismo – A Powerful and Efficient Way of Helping One Another!

According to the World Council of Credit Unions (WOCCU), a credit union is “a customer/member-owned financial cooperative, demo­crati­cally controlled by its members, and operated to maximize the econo­mic benefit of its members by providing financial services at competitive and fair rates.” In short, savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs) are member-based institutions that intermediate savings into loans, enabling low-income populations to accumulate savings and create a source of credit at reasonable rates. Cooperatives represent an economically viable avenue for changing people’s lives, based on the powerful idea that

by Ben Barba -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Purpl Launches Remittances, Digital Wallets in Lebanon; Partners with Banque Libano-Française, Paysend

Purpl, a financial technology (fintech) firm with offices in Lebanon and UAE, recently launched its app, which allows customers in Lebanon to use their phones to make electronic payments and receive money from individuals abroad. Through the firm’s partnership with UK-based Paysend, Purpl customers can receive payments from

by Renata Samadova -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: 25th MFC Annual Conference: Thriving Together; May 24-25, 2023; Budva, Montenegro

This event is organized with the goal of addressing evolving challenges such as climate change, political instability and the “uncertain future of work.” The agenda includes sessions such as: (1) 25th Anniversary Time Travel: Lessons From the Past That Point to