Low-income Financial Transformation (L-IFT), a firm with teams in 13 countries in Africa and Asia, recently reported on a study it is performing with data being collected over one year from 140 small businesses in Ethiopia. The study addresses the way the Ethiopian government taxes enterprises that bring in less than ETB 500,000 (USD 8,900) per year. Rather than asking the businesses to submit financial data, the Ministry of Finance estimates their income based on external characteristics. The goal of the study is to investigate “the accuracy of
Tag: SMEs
SPECIAL REPORT: The Business Case for Education Finance #EMW2023
Many families in low- and middle-income countries send their kids to low-cost private schools because the government is not meeting the need. However, many of these schools are not registered as businesses and don’t keep good records, so it is hard for them to borrow from banks to improve their facilities. Meanwhile, about one in five school-aged children – 260 million worldwide – are not in school.
Varthana is a lender in India that specializes helping schools expand. Its loans are often in the range of USD 20,000 to USD 100,000. The firm has developed a track record and so now is able to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: AfDB, Ingenosya Create Mada Business Linkage Online Portal to Boost SME Success in Madagascar
The multilateral African Development Bank (AfDB) recently introduced an online service called Mada Business Linkage to facilitate partnerships among companies in Madagascar, including to match firms with suppliers and subcontractors. The Madagascar-based technology company Ingenosya built the platform, which businesses can use for no
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Stanbic Bank Uganda, IFAD Seek to Reduce Costs of Remittances via FlexiPay E-wallet, Encourage Adoption via SACCOs
Kampala-based Stanbic Bank Uganda and the UN International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) have announced a partnership with the goal of reducing the cost of remittances to Uganda from other countries. In particular, the aim is to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Hamkorbank of Uzbekistan Borrows $50m from FMO to Fund SMEs Owned by Women, Youth; Microenterprise; Climate Projects
The Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO) recently loaned USD 50 million to Uzbekistan-based Joint Stock Commercial Bank Hamkorbank. Hamkorbank plans to use 70 percent of the fresh funds to finance
MICROFINANCE EVENT: Global SME Finance Forum; September 12-14, 2023; Mumbai, India
The ninth iteration of this event will explore financial services providers’ delivery of digital services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), leveraging samples from India and abroad. The forum will cover topics – particularly “ecosystems” – relating to digital finance, international
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: First City Monument Bank of Nigeria Offers Asset Financing Starting at $600
First City Monument Bank (FCMB) of Nigeria has begun offering loans of NGN 500,000 (USD 600) to NGN 3 million (USD 3,600) with terms of one year to four years for businesses to finance purchases of equipment and machinery. FCMB reports that it also may grant customers – in certain circumstances –
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Oikocredit Lending $4.9m to Support MSMEs Led by Women in Paraguay Via Ueno App
Oikocredit, a cooperative investor based in the Netherlands, has agreed to loan EUR 4.5 million (USD 4.9 million) for five years to Paraguay-based Financiera Ueno, aiming to promote microenterprises as well
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Khan Bank Raises $10m in Bond Sale to Vision Microfinance Dual Return Fund to Support Women’s SMEs in Mongolia
Symbiotics Investments, a Switzerland-based investor focused on smaller businesses in low- and middle- income countries, recently facilitated a bond issue channeling USD 10 million to Khan Bank, which serves individuals and companies of all sizes in Mongolia, to support UN Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5: Gender Equality. Impact Asset Management (I-AM), a unit of Austria’s C-Quadrat Investment Group, bought the bond through its Vision
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Credit Bank, FSD Kenya Engaging SACCOs in Effort to Reduce Remittance Costs for Rural Kenyans
The UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) recently announced a pair of programs that will operate in Kenya under the EU’s Platform for Remittances, Investments and Migrants’ Entrepreneurship in Africa (PRIME Africa). In particular, IFAD will fund
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Uzpromstroybank (UzPSB) Borrowing $15m from EBRD for SMEs in Uzbekistan
The multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently agreed to provide a two-year loan in local currency equivalent to USD 15 million to the Uzbekistani bank Uzpromstroybank (UzPSB) for on-lending to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the country. Contingent on the performance of the wholesale loan, EBRD is planning to
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MicroVest Lending $3.4m to Financiera Finexpar for Agriculture, SME Lending in Paraguay
MicroVest, an asset management subsidiary of US-based DAI Global, recently issued a loan of USD 3.4 million to the Paraguay-based microfinance institution (MFI) Financiera Finexpar to support the MFI’s lending activities, specifically the funding of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) engaged in
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tunisie Leasing and Factoring Borrows $7.5m from BII-Symbiotics Green Bond Program for SMEs in Tunisia
Symbiotics Investments recently issued a loan of USD 7.5 million to Tunisie Leasing and Factoring (TLF) “to further expand its renewable energy and energy-efficient machinery and equipment offerings” for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Tunisia. Symbiotics sourced the funding
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Enabling Qapital Loans $10m to AccessBank for Microfinance, SME Lending in Azerbaijan
Enabling Qapital Limited, a Switzerland-based investment advisory company, recently issued a loan of AZN 17 million (USD 10 million) to AccessBank, which was founded in 2002 to provide credit and other financial services to smaller businesses and low-income families in Azerbaijan. The three-year loan is to be used
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Bank of Maldives Borrowing $40m from ADB, JICA, OeEB, for Blue Economy, SMEs, Tourism
The multilateral Asian Development Bank (ADB) recently announced a syndicated funding package of USD 41 million for the Bank of Maldives Plc (BML) to support tourism and other sectors. ADB syndicated the funding, which encompasses
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: EBRD Purchases 5% Equity Stake in ProCredit from IFC, Increasing Exposure to SMEs in Europe, Ecuador
The multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently purchased a 5-percent stake in Germany-based ProCredit Holding from the World Bank Group’s International Finance Corporation (IFC), along with a
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Accion, Sturgeon Lead $6.4m Equity Round for Trukkr, Fintech Serving Trucking SMEs in Pakistan
Trukkr, a Pakistan-based financial technology (fintech) firm, recently obtained USD 6.4 million in a funding round led by two impact investors, US-based Accion Venture Lab and UK-based Sturgeon Capital, with placements also made by Al Zayani Venture Capital, Haitou Global and Peter Findley. The breakdown
MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FMO Lends $10m to Latin American Agriculture Development Corporation (LAAD) to Boost Green Investment
The Dutch development bank Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden (FMO) recently lent USD 10 million to the US-based Latin American Agriculture Development Corporation (LAAD), a funder of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that export agricultural products. The loan is intended to support