According to the Bharat Microfinance Report released by Sa-Dhan, an organization of microfinance institutions in India, the portfolio of NGO microfinance institutions (MFIs) grew 97 percent to INR 351 billion (the equivalent of USD 7.7 billion) in 2009.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: The Microfinance Association Launches an Investor Matching Service that Aims to Assist Microcredit Institutions Looking for International Investors
The Microfinance Association has launched the Investors Matching service that aims to promote and facilitate the creation of strategic partnerships through matching the interests of microcredit organizations with those of local and international investors.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) Provides $4m Synthetic Loan to FINCA to Support Micro- and Small Enterprises in Armenia
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), an international finance institution, has made a synthetic loan in Armenian drams (AMD) equivalent to USD 4 million to FINCA Universal Credit Organization Closed Joint Stock Company (FINCA Armenia), a non-bank credit organization serving micro- and small enterprises (MSEs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Changes to Brazilian Development Bank’s (BNDES’s) Microcredit Program Aims to Double Number of Disbursements and Expand Microfinance Portfolio by 50% in Next Two Years
The Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES), a federal public finance company, recently announced changes to its microcredit program that could double the number of disbursements to microfinance institutions (MFIs) and expand its portfolio by 50 percent from BRL 80 million (the equivalent of USD 44.4 million) to BRL 120 million (the equivalent of USD 66.6 million).
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: Does Microfinance Repayment Flexibility Affect Entrepreneurial Behavior and Loan Default?, by Erica Field, Rohini Pande and John Papp
Written by Erica Field, Rohini Pande and John Papp, published by The Institute for Financial Management and Research (IFMR) in October 2009, 33 pages, available at: http://ifmr.ac.in/cmf/publications/wp/2010/34_Field_Flexibility_Repayment.pdf
This study examines whether the rigidity of microfinance loan repayment structures inhibits investment in microenterprises.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP) Takes Measures to Assist Farmers and Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises Affected by El Nino
The Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines (RBAP), an organization founded to promote the rural banking industry in the Philippines, recently stated that its members will take measures to assist farmers and small and medium-sized enterprises affected by El Nino, a climate pattern that often results in weather disturbances.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Launches Credit Guarantee Scheme for Small and Rural Enterprises Funded by United Kingdom’s Department for International Development (DFID) and Pakistan’s Financial Inclusion Program (FIP)
The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), Pakistan’s central banking authority, recently launched two programs to increase the supply of credit to small and rural enterprises under its Financial Inclusion Program (FIP).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: State Bank of India, a Nationalized Commercial Bank, Provides $43.9m Loan to Hyderbad-Based Microfinance Institution (MFI), SHARE Microfin Limited
The State Bank of India (SBI), a nationalized commercial bank, has provided an INR 200 crore loan, the equivalent of over USD 43.9 million, to SHARE Microfin Limited, a microfinance institution (MFI) based in Hyderabad, India.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN) Predicts Efforts Will Lower Microfinance Interest Rates in India
The Microfinance Institutions Network (MFIN), a self-regulatory organization of 35 of India’s microfinance companies, is currently working on several projects that it predicts will lower interest rates on microloans.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Sequoia Capital India, Sandstone Capital, Kismet Capital Advisors and SKS Trust for the Benefit of Women Entrepreneurs Replace SKS Microfinance Founder Mr Vikram Akula as Promoter of the Company
A group of four venture capital companies have replaced Mr Vikram Akula, founder of the Indian microfinance institution (MFI) SKS Microfinance, as promoter of the firm.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: World Bank (WB) to Loan $300m to Egypt to Promote Access to Finance for Micro- and Small Entrepreneurs
The World Bank’s (WB’s) Board of Executive Directors has approved a USD 300 million loan that aims to support an Egyptian government program to improve access to finance for micro- and small entrepreneurs in the country.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Kenyan Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) Commissions Survey of Microinsurance Market
The Kenyan Insurance Regulatory Authority (IRA) recently commissioned a survey of the country’s microinsurance market in an attempt to facilitate the penetration of microinsurance through policy reforms.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) of the Philippines Reports 7.1 Million Microentrepreneurs Received $3.7b in Loans Between 2001 and 2009
According to Secretary Domingo F. Panganiban of the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC) of the Philippines, 7.1 million microentrepreneurs have received PHP 168 billion in loans, the equivalent of over USD 3.7 billion, from 2001 to 2009.
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mohammed Yunus, Founder of Grameen Bank, Calls for Standardized Interest Rate for Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) and Strict Definition of “Microcredit” in Bangladesh
Mohammed Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank, a microfinance institution (MFI) located in Bangladesh, recently was reported to have said that the Microcredit Regulatory Authority (MRA), Bangladesh’s primary regulator over the microfinance activities of all non-governmental organization (NGO) microfinance institutions (MFIs), should introduce a standardized maximum interest rate that can be charged by MFIs.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) Microfinance Conference, Organized in Association with Luxembourg Fund Labelling Agency (LuxFLAG), March 25, 2010, Luxembourg
Event Name: Association of the Luxembourg Fund Industry (ALFI) Microfinance Conference
Event Date: March 25, 2010
Event Location: Chambre de Commerce, 7, Rue Alcide Gasperi, Luxembourg
Event Website: http://www.alfi.lu/index.php?id=70&tx_mjseventpro_pi1[showUid]=26&cHash=8f25d57051
See Our Comprehensive Event Calendar Here: http://microfinanceassociation.ning.com/events
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroFinance Transparency Receives Ford Foundation Grant to Promote Transparency in Latin American Microfinance Industry
MicroFinance Transparency (MFTransparency), a US-based non-governmental organization that aims to disseminate accurate and comparable microfinance product cost information, has received a grant from the Ford Foundation to expand its work in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia and Ecuador.
MICROCAPITAL EVENT: Money Transfers Dubai (MTD) 2010, Dubai, March 22, 2010
Event Name: Money Transfers Dubai (MTD) 2010
Event Date: March 22, 2010
Event Location: Jumeirah Emirates Towers, Dubai
Event Website: http://www.iamtn.org/events/mtd-2010
See Our Comprehensive Event Calendar Here: http://microfinanceassociation.ning.com/events
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: University of Greenwich Issues Call for Papers for ‘Global Partnerships in Microfinance’ Conference, September 2010
The University of Greenwich, in collaboration with the University of Birmingham and Burgundy School of Business, has issued a call for papers for its Global Partnerships in Microfinance conference, taking place September 6 to September 7, 2010.