MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Investment Manager BlueOrchard Finance Invests $8m in Caja Municipal de Ahorro y Crédito (CMAC) Ica and Crear Arequipa of Peru, Pro Mujer Bolivia and Fundación para el Desarrollo Socioeconómico Rural (FUNDESER) of Nicaragua

BlueOrchard Finance SA, a subsidiary of Switzerland-based commercial microfinance intermediary BlueOrchard, recently reported to MicroCapital the details of four debt investments made during the month of September 2010 to microfinance institutions (MFIs) Caja Municipal de Ahorro y Crédito (CMAC) Ica and Crear Arequipa of Peru, the Bolivian operations of Pro Mujer and Fundación para el Desarrollo Socioeconómico Rural (FUNDESER) of Nicaragua.

BlueOrchard loaned the local-currency equivalent of USD 2.7 million to CMAC Ica, an MFI based in Peru. As of year-end 2009, CMAC Ica has a gross loan portfolio of USD 120.5 million, USD 140 million in total assets and 58,160 borrowers. An additional local-currency loan equivalent to USD 3 million was made to Crear Arequipa, another MFI based in Peru. As of year-end 2009, Crear Arequipa had a gross loan portfolio of USD 106.2 million, USD 117.1 million in total assets and 79,300 borrowers.

A loan of USD 300,000 was made to the Bolivian branch of Pro Mujer, an organization providing microfinance, business training and healthcare in five Latin American countries. As of year-end 2009, Pro Mujer Bolivia had a gross loan portfolio of USD 28 million, USD 32.3 million in total assets and 80,600 borrowers.

The final loan was made to FUNDESER, a MFI based in Nicaragua, in the amount of USD 300,000. As of year-end 2009, FUNDESER had a gross loan portfolio of USD 15.7 million, total assets of USD 23.5 million and 30,200 borrowers.

By Witt Gatchell, Research Associate

About BlueOrchard:
BlueOrchard is a Switzerland-based, commercial microfinance intermediary that provides loans to microfinance institutions through its subsidiary BlueOrchard Finance S.A. and invests in the equity of microfinance institutions and microfinance network funds through its subsidiary BlueOrchard Investments S.A. BlueOrchard had approximately USD 980 million under management as of June 2009.

About Pro Mujer:
Pro Mujer is a women’s development and microfinance organization, established in 1990, that provides microfinance services, healthcare and training to 202,000 women in Latin America. These services are delivered through communal banks, or peer groups, of 20 to 30 women who support each other and guarantee each other’s loans. Pro Mujer has a presence in Argentina, Bolivia, Mexico, Nicaragua, Peru and the US. As of 2008 Pro Mujer reported total assets of USD 62.5 million.

Sources and Additional Information:
[1] Data submitted by BlueOrchard to MicroCapital October 2010

MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Blue Orchard
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Blu…

MicroCapital’s Microfinance Universe profile: Pro Mujer
https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/tiki-index.php?page=Pro…

Browse the MicroCapital Universe and add your entry to the wiki at https://www.microcapital.org/microfinanceuniverse/.

Similar Posts: