CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), an independent policy and research center housed at the World Bank, recently released its survey of financial regulators “Financial Access 2010”.
Category: Trends/Challenges
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Social Investors Investigate Criteria for Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Performance of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), Triple Jump, Oikocredit Hold Meeting to Mull Harmonization of ESG Evaluation
The Social Investor Working Group on Tool Sharing and Harmonization, a group born out of the Social Investor Group meeting in Bern in June 2010, where approximately 40 investors representing about half of total assets under management in the microfinance sector met to discuss socially responsible investing, is exploring different ways to assess the environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) Calls on Funders to Join SmartAid 2011, An Index of Microfinance Support Efficacy
CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor) has recently announced the release of SmartAid 2011, an index that measures and rates the way microfinance funders support microfinance.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ Bank) to Start Microfinance Center in Fiji
Norman Wilson, the chief executive of the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ Bank), a publicly traded bank that provides retail, commercial banking and wealth management services, confirmed that the bank is planning to start a microfinance center in Fiji in collaboration with the Asian Development Bank, and the International Financial Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Jason Fairbourne of Brigham Young University Advocates Use of Microfranchising in Conjunction with Microfinance
An article was recently published by US Newspaper The Salt Lake Tribune about microfranchising, a concept that aims to construct business models that can be easily replicated by “microbusinessmen”.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Peter Van Dijk Outlines Measures to Strengthen Rights of Microfinance Institution Customers
Peter Van Dijk, a consultant based in Indonesia, recently wrote an opinion piece that appeared on the Microfinance Focus website outlining measures to enhance the rights of consumers of microfinance institutions (MFIs).
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Prepaid Mobile 2010 Conference, Barcelona, Spain, September 27-September 30, 2010
Event Name: Prepaid Mobile 2010
Event Date: September 27-September 30, 2010
Event Location: Barcelona, Spain
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: Building Houses, Financing Homes; by Anamitra Deb, Ashish Karamchandani and Raina Singh; Published by Monitor Inclusive Markets
By Anamitra Deb, Ashish Karamchandani and Raina Singh, Published by Monitor Inclusive Markets, July 2010, 16 pages, available at: http://www.monitor.com/Portals/0/MonitorContent/imported/MonitorUnitedStates/Articles/PDFs/Monitor_Inclusive_Markets_Building_Houses_Financing_Homes_exec_summary.pdf
In this paper, Anamitra Deb, Ashish Karamchandani and Raina Singh examine the future of housing development and finance for the low-income population of urban India, specifically Ahmedabad and Mumbai.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) Begin Exploring Student Loan Market
Microfinance institutions are beginning to experiment with education loans, potentially allowing students to achieve higher levels of education and income.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Intellecap Hosts 2010 Srijan Financial Inclusion Forum and Awards in Mumbai, India, October 7 – 8, 2010
Event Name: 2010 Srijan Financial Inclusion Forum
Event Date: October 7, 2010 – October 8, 2010
Event Locations: Taj Land’s End, Mumbai, India
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) Hosts “Understanding Failures in Microfinance” in Washington, DC on September 22, 2010
Event Name: Understanding Failures in Microfinance
Event Date: September 22, 2010
Event Location: Center for Financial Inclusion, Washington, DC, USA
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Micro Housing Finance Corporation (MHFC) of India Achieves $2.16m in Loan Sanctions
The Micro Housing Finance Corporation (MHFC), an India-based housing finance company established in 2008, has reported to MicroCapital that it has reached INR 100 million (USD 2.16 million) in loan sanctions.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroSave and Microfinance Focus Form Strategic Alliance to Expand Microfinance Resources
MicroSave, a microfinance consulting company established in 1998, has partnered with the Microfinance Focus website in a strategic alliance to promote microfinance knowledge sharing and dissemination with an emphasis on engaging diverse and geographically dispersed practitioners.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Report Recommends Withdrawal of Priority Sector Status from Microfinance Institutions (MFIs)
An unreleased report by a committee of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) that was recently leaked to the Indian newspaper Economic Times recommended that RBI withdraw the priority sector status of microfinance institutions (MFIs), which allows MFIs borrow at lower interest rates.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bhagwan Chowdhry Argues that Microcredit, MicroInsurance Spread Risks for Communities in Developing World
An article written by Dr Bhagwan Chowdhry, professor of finance and faculty director of the UCLA Anderson School [2], appeared on the Huffington Post on September 8, 2010 making the case that microcredit and microinsurance are effective ways of spreading risks in the developing world.
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: Non-bank E-Money Issuers: Regulatory Approaches to Protecting Customer Funds; by Michael Tarazi and Paul Breloff; Published by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor)
By Michael Tarazi and Paul Breloff, published by CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), Focus Note 63, July 2010, 12 pages, available at: http://www.cgap.org/p/site/c/template.rc/1.9.45715/
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Department of Agriculture of the Philippines Orders Release of $2.3m for Microfinance Activities in Areas Stricken by El Niño Drought
The Department of Agriculture of the Philippines, which is responsible for promoting prosperity in the country’s farming communities, recently ordered the release of PHP 100 million (the equivalent of USD 2.27 million) for microfinance activities in areas affected by an El Niño-induced drought.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance India 2010 Awards to be Presented at The Microfinance India Summit, November 15, 2010
Access Development Services, an Indian nonprofit organization that offers consulting services to microfinance institutions (MFIs), and Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC) Limited, an international banking group, will present the Microfinance India Awards 2010 at the Microfinance India Summit on November 15, 2010.