France-based BNP Paribas informed MicroCapital that today it disbursed a loan of INR 350 million (USD 4.9 million) to Fusion Microfinance, which offers microloans in amounts from INR 3,000 (USD 42) to INR 60,000 (USD 840) with terms of five months to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: IDB Commits $250m Credit Line to FND of Mexico for Rural Development
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), a US-based multilateral finance institution that operates in Latin America and the Caribbean, recently committed USD 250 million in loan funding for rural Mexico. IDB is opening the credit line
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Loans $16m to Banco Sabadell Casablanca to Increase Lending to SMEs in Morocco
The UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently issued a loan of MAD 165 million (USD 16 million) to the local unit of Spain-based Banco Sabadell SA to increase the financing of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Morocco. Founded in 2009, Banco Sabadell Casablanca is primarily involved in Morocco’s SME market. The entity earned a profit of EUR 1.2 million (USD 1.4 million) during 2018. As of June 2019, it held total assets of MAD 1.1 billion (USD 110 million).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: BRAC Founder, Microfinance Leader Sir Fazle Hasan Abed Passes Away in Bangladesh
Fazle Hasan Abed, the founder and a former Chairperson of BRAC (Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee), the Bangladesh-based NGO dedicated to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Loans $10m to DRC Arm of Nigeria’s Access Bank for SME Lending
The Netherlands Development Finance Company, which is also known by its Dutch acronym FMO, recently issued a loan of USD 10 million to the unit of Nigeria’s Access Bank Plc that operates in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) to increase its financing of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Issues $20m Credit Line to Ipoteka Bank of Uzbekistan to Increase Microfinance, SME Lending
Micro-, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in Uzbekistan are due to gain increased access to financing via a loan in the amount of EUR 18 million (USD 20 million) provided by the UK-based European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) to Uzbekistan’s Ipoteka Bank.
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Sankalp Africa Summit; February 27 – 28, 2020; Nairobi, Kenya
The aim for the seventh Sankalp Africa Summit is to “discuss, define, and drive forward the critical levers of entrepreneurial success for the Sustainable Development Goals to be achieved by 2030 in Africa.” The summit will focus on challenges,
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “A Tale of Two Sisters: Microfinance Institutions and PAYGo Solar;” by Waldron, Sotiriou, Winiecki; published by CGAP
By Daniel Waldron, Alexander Sotiriou and Jacob Winiecki; published by CGAP (the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor); November 2019; 24 pages; available at https://www.cgap.org/sites/default/files/publications/2019_11_Focus_Note_Paygo_Two_Sisters_2.pdf
In Sub-Saharan Africa, the popularity of acquiring access to solar products in pay-as-you-go (PAYGo) formats is growing. This report assesses options available to microfinance institutions (MFIs) to engage with this market, which is largely dominated by new financial technology (fintech) companies. Devices that use PAYGo technology can be enabled and disabled remotely based on the payments their users make to the financiers of the devices.
The report primarily draws on
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: From Nepal: “Improving Operational Efficiency of MFIs through Tablet Banking,” published by Louis Berger Group
Published by Louis Berger Group, November 2019, 9 pages, available at https://sakchyam.com.np/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/Improving-Operational-Efficiency-of-MFIs-through-Tablet-Banking.pdf
The authors argue that “tablet banking” can reduce the operational costs of microfinance institutions (MFIs) while improving the quality of customer service. Through the Sakchyam Access to Finance Program, approximately 2,300 tablets were provided to 10 MFIs in Nepal for use by staff in a total of 486 branches. Based on observations of this rollout, the authors identify three partially overlapping questions
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tightened Regulation in Zimbabwe Makes Directors, Officers, Shareholders Personally Liable to Microfinance Institution Depositors in Case of Negligence
A new law in Zimbabwe tightens the requirements for microfinance institutions (MFIs) in the country. Each of Zimbabwe’s 205 MFIs will have to pay a yearly fee to maintain its registration with the government. The law also provides for the creation of a Microfinance Advisory Council (MAC), which will report to Minister of Finance and Economic Development on strategic and governance issues. The council membership will include government officials as well as representatives of the banking industry, the microfinance industry and “a reputable
MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Landscape of Microinsurance in Africa 2018,” published by Microinsurance Network
By Alice Merry, published by the Microinsurance Network, November 2019, 27 pages, available at https://microinsurancenetwork.org/sites/default/files/Landscape%20of%20Microinsurance%20in%20Africa%202018_LR.pdf
This iteration of the Landscape series provides insights into the microinsurance industry based on data from 2017 supplied by 100 insurers in 16 countries in Africa, focusing on changes since a similar study published in 2015. Overall, as of December 2017,
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Hayman Microfinance, Ongo Launch Digital Loan Repayment Service in Myanmar
Hayman Capital (Microfinance) Company Limited, a licensed deposit-taking microfinance institution (MFI) in Myanmar, recently partnered with Ongo, a local digital payment service provider, to launch an electronic loan repayment system for its 110,000 customers, of whom 70 percent reside in rural areas and 77 percent are women. The service allows clients to repay their loans via
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Nigerian Fintech Firm OPay Raises $120m in Equity Funding for Digital Payments, Ride Hailing, Food Delivery
OPay, a Nigerian mobile platform for making payments, arranging car rides and ordering deliveries from restaurants, recently raised USD 120 million in equity from 10 investors to scale up in Nigeria and expand to countries such as Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. OPay’s transportation arm, ORide, facilitates up to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Luxembourg Donates $4m to EIB for Technical Assistance for Microfinance in Asia, Caribbean, Pacific (ACP) Countries
The Ministry of Finance and the Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg recently agreed to give EUR 3.6 million (USD 4 million) to the EU’s European Investment Bank (EIB) for microfinance in low- and middle-income countries of Asia, the Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP). The funding is for institutions serving
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Africa Trade and Investment Convention; March 26-27, 2021; Amsterdam, the Netherlands – NEW DATES
Previously scheduled to take place in April 2020, this event offers a B2B Matchmaking Forum, country-specific meetings, and sessions on topics such as: financing agriculture, value chains, magnifying the potential of youth and women, “The Role of the Diaspora,”
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: With “Homeland” App, MTN Opens Remittance Channels from Europe to Africa, Afghanistan, Yemen
South Africa’s MTN Group recently released an application for mobile phones called MTN Homeland that allows users to send money or airtime to 17 countries from Europe. The service allows cash remittances to Cameroon, Congo Brazzaville, Ghana, Guinea Conakry, Rwanda and Uganda. It also allows the sending of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Hayman Microfinance of Myanmar Borrows $14m from AGD Bank, BlueOrchard Finance, Maybank, Symbiotics
Hayman Capital (Microfinance) Company Limited, a licensed deposit-taking microfinance institution (MFI) in Myanmar, recently received loans totaling USD 13.75 million to support microlending in the Ayeyarwaddy, Bago, Magway, Mandalay, Nay Pyi Taw, Sagaing and Yangon regions. The MFI is a fully owned subsidiary of Hayman Capital Private Limited, a Singapore-based investment and financial holding group.
The first of Hayman Microfinance’s loans was a 3-year contract of
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Canada, UN Collaborate on Women Entrepreneurs’ Access to Microfinance, Technology in Bangladesh
As part of a five-year, six-country effort, Catalyzing Women’s Entrepreneurship: Creating a Gender-responsive Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, the governments of Bangladesh and Canada are collaborating with the UN to create an enabling environment for women in business. With the goal of supporting “poverty reduction, social well-being and