by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Themed “Inclusive Growth in a Digital Era,” Financial Inclusion Week 2022 Offers 180 Virtual Sessions, October 17-20

For the eighth year, the Center for Financial Inclusion, a program of the US-based NGO Accion, is organizing Financial Inclusion Week, an opportunity for all stakeholders to attend virtual sessions – both live and on-demand – at no charge. The theme for 2022 is “Inclusive Growth in a Digital Era,” with sessions covering 14 topics such as Climate Change, Client Protection,

by Renata Samadova -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Africa Fintech Summit; November 2-4, 2022; Cape Town, South Africa

The eighth edition of this event offers attendees 21 sessions presented by stakeholders representing fintech [financial technology] firms and investors overseeing total capital of USD 4.5 billion. The detailed event program is yet to be announced, but it is to include

by Nithin Naren -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bboxx Acquires Peg Africa, Expanding Solar Energy Footprint, Product Lineup

Bboxx, a UK-registered solar energy firm, recently paid an undisclosed sum to acquire Peg Africa, a company based in Ghana that offers rent-to-own financing for solar products in West Africa. In addition to Ghana, the acquisition adds

by Saulius Ramanauskas -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Banking in Layers: Five Cases to Illustrate How the Market Structure for Financial Services is Evolving;” by Aiaze Mitha, Faith Biegon, Peter Zetterli; Published by CGAP

This paper cites several financial service providers (FSPs) in emerging markets in exploring how recent advancements in digital technology have enabled new business models, transforming the market for financial services. The authors argue that these FSPs have deconstructed the financial services market into separate modules, allowing these modules to be reassembled in innovative ways. These modules include:

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Prophius, Mastercard Enable SMEs in Africa to Accept “Tap-on-phone” Payments

Prophius, a Nigeria-based financial technology (fintech) firm, recently entered a partnership with US-based technology provider Mastercard, to equip its PayContactless service to allow its users to accept payments on their Android mobile phones from customers’ payment cards, e-wallets and

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP), Sowit Deliver Agritech to Farmers in Morocco

Morocco’s Banque Centrale Populaire (BCP) recently signed an agreement with Sowit, a provider of agricultural technology (agritech) services, to support farmers in Morocco in increasing their profitability with better data and access to finance. In particular, Sowit will provide farmers in the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region with

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Zambia Seeking to Leverage Government Infrastructure for Private FSPs to Increase Rural Financial Inclusion

The Zambian government recently announced a plan to give financial services providers access to government buildings in rural areas to expand their service footprints. The authorities are looking to make financial access points available in every district of Zambia, where 18

by Saulius Ramanauskas -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Silatech, Gojo Partner to Provide Digital Finance to Youth-led Enterprises in Cambodia, India, Sri Lanka

The Qatar-based social enterprise Silatech recently launched a three-year partnership with the Japanese microfinance investor Gojo & Company with the aim of supporting 90,000 youth in Cambodia, India and Sri Lanka with digital financial services to facilitate the founding and expansion of micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Among the strategies of the partnership is

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Opportunity International Strengthening Financial, Training Technology in Lower-income Countries in Partnership with Krach Family Foundation, Krach Institute for Tech Diplomacy

Opportunity International, a US-based NGO, recently moved to strengthen the technology it uses to provide microfinance and other services in 30 countries. The goal is to help people with low incomes “make their businesses more scalable and efficient” through better access to market information, financial education, business training and financial services. These services can take the form of smartphone apps, cloud services, digital forms of identification and others. An element of achieving these goals is to boost users’ – and potential users’ – confidence in

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sahyadri Farms of India Raises $39m in Equity from Incofin, FMO, Korys, Proparco to Boost Smallholder Farmers’ Exports of Fruits, Vegetables

The Belgian impact investor Incofin recently led an investment round in Sahyadri Farms, an Indian firm that works with smallholder farmers to grow and process food for export. The value of the equity round is INR 3.1 billion (USD 39 million), including participation from the Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO); Korys, the impact investing firm of Belgium’s Colruyt family; and the French government’s Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique (Proparco).

Sahyadri Farms is a “farmer-led” firm that buys nine crops from 18,000 farmers who tend

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kiva Lends $2m to Migrante, Provider of Vehicle Loans to Migrants from Venezuela to Chile

Kiva Capital, a unit of the US-based NGO Kiva, recently informed MicroCapital that it has loaned USD 2 million to Migrante, a lender to migrants and refugees in Chile, through its Kiva Refugee Investment Fund. Founded in 2018, Migrante is a financial technology (fintech) firm with 27,000 borrowers, mainly

by Nithin Naren -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Fintech Zeepay Nets $10m in Debt Financing, Expanding Digital Wallet Services in Africa, Latin America

Verdant Capital, an African corporate finance firm, recently announced it has raised USD 10 million in “medium-term” debt funding for Zeepay, a financial technology (fintech) company serving 20 countries in Africa as well as – via partners – markets in the Americas and Europe. Zeepay, which has offices in Ghana and the UK, plans to use the funding to expand: