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Carlos Slim, Muhammad Yunus Take Grameen Bank to Mexico
September, 29 2008
Mexico City, Mexico - Mexican multi-billionaire Carlos Slim and Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank and 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner, said Monday in Mexico City that the bank for the poor will begin to operate in Mexico with an initial capital of 45 million dollars
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Barclays to Invest £10m in Community Finance Schemes
September, 26 2008
London, United Kingdom - A project that will give hundreds of thousands of people in developing countries access to community-based financial services will be launched today in New York. The programme is led by Barclays and follows a pilot project the bank has been undertaking in Uganda to support Village Savings and Loans Associations (VSLAs) in a joint project with the Guardian
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PepsiCo Foundation Announces Innovative New Initiatives to Drive Sustainable Water Practices
September, 25 2008
New York, United States - PepsiCo Foundation announced today two major new grants to WaterPartners and Safe Water Network programs to provide access to safe water and sanitation for individuals and communities in developing countries. The grants, totaling $7.6 million, are a component of the ongoing commitment by PepsiCo Foundation to promote and accelerate sustainable approaches to water access, conservation and usage in underserved regions .
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India: Fund Tap Going Dry for Microfinanciers
September, 24 2008
Mumbai, India - The global credit crunch has led to a significant drop in fund flow to the microfinance sector. Banks, which are required to provide 32-40% of their loans to the priority sector (which includes rural credit), are the largest providers of funds to MFIs
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Schwab Charitable Pioneers Innovative Microfinance Guarantee Program
September, 24 2008
San Francisco, United States - Schwab Charitable, one of the country’s largest and fastest growing nonprofits and facilitators of charitable giving with over $2 billion in assets and $350MM in annual grants, announced today the launch of an innovative microfinance guarantee program
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Mexico: HSBC to Divest its Stake in Financiera Independencia
September, 18 2008
Mexico City, Mexico - Financiera Independencia, a Mexican microfinance lender of personal loans to lower income segment individuals, announced today that HSBC Overseas Holdings UK Limited (HOHU), has informed the company of its intention to divest its entire stake in Independencia, which represents 126,999,000 shares equivalent to 18.68% of total shares outstanding
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AIG Investments Invests in Blue Intercontinental Micro Finance Bank
September, 18 2008
New York, United States - AIG Investments today announced an investment in Blue Intercontinental Micro Finance Bank ("BIMFB"), a joint venture between Nigeria's Intercontinental Bank and Blue Financial Services ("Blue") aimed to distribute and sell micro-financing services and products into Nigeria's retail market. The equity investment will be funded by AIG Global Emerging Markets Fund II, L.P. ("GEM II").
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New Center to Foster Financial Inclusion of World’s Poor through Private-Sector Engagement
September, 18 2008
Boston, United States - Can commercial microfinance institutions organize themselves to protect the interests of their poor clients? The Center for Financial Inclusion at ACCION International is launching its activities today with a focus on answering that provocative question, among others. The Center will connect private-sector, non-profit and academic expertise and resources to accelerate the reach and increase the quality of microfinance worldwide.
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CGAP Launches SmartAid 2009
September, 18 2008
Washington DC, United States - CGAP's SmartAid for Microfinance Index 2009 is the first ever effort to measure, rate, and compare how well development organizations are set up to effectively provide funding and advisory services to microfinance area. Funders that work in microfinance are invited to participate in this unique exercise. By joining in this effort, funders demonstrate that they have a strong commitment to transparency and accountability
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Social Capital Markets 2008 Conference in San Francisco, October 13-15
September, 12 2008
San Francisco, United States - 'Doing well by doing good' is becoming the mantra of a new generation of social entrepreneurs and investors. The Social Capital Markets Conference 2008 will bring together these catalytic changemakers - the entrepreneurs who want to change the world and the capital that wants to make it happen.
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Can Islamic Finance Go Micro?
September, 11 2008
Washington, United States - With more than half-a-trillion dollars in assets and an annual growth rate that has outpaced conventional banks’ by nearly 50 percent, the Islamic finance industry is already making waves among investment fund managers. And this not only applies to the Muslim world: The Banker magazine recently named the United Kingdom to its list of the top 15 countries managing Sharia-compliant assets
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India: ALW Private ltd. Closes Series B Funding of INR 287.4 million (USD 6.4 million)
September, 10 2008
Alkapuri, India - A. Little. World. Private Limited (”ALW”), leveraging new generation technologies to enable financial inclusion at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP), announced the closing of INR 287.4 Million in series B funding led by Bellwether Microfinance Fund Pvt. Ltd. and India Financial Inclusion Fund, both managed by Hyderabad-based caspian advisors
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World Bank Approves Additional US$50 Million for Rural Financing in Mexico
September, 09 2008
Washington, United States - Today the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved an additional US$50 million to assist the Mexican Government in strengthening savings and credit institutions in the rural sector. This project comes about as support to the Public Saving and Credit Law approved in 2001. The Law combined legal and regulatory reforms with public investment to create and strengthen the capacity of the savings and credit institutions in the rural sector, as well as the regulatory agencies that supervise them
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Microfinance Meets the Market, But With High Transaction Costs
September, 08 2008
Lagos, Nigeria - Microfinance institutions have established that reliable banking services can be provided to poor customers. Researchers Cull, Demirguc-Kunt, and Morduch analyze the tensions and opportunities as microfinance institutions attempt to fulfill their second objective —to be commercially viable.
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Vietnam: State Dominates Microfinance Market
September, 07 2008
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam - Limited understanding about microfinance and a misconception that financial services for low income earners is a charitable activity have hindered the development of the sector in Vietnam, experts said.
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Mobile Banking: Where No Bank Has Gone Before
September, 04 2008
Washington, United States - What do these countries have in common: Kenya, Pakistan, Mongolia, the Maldives? They share political challenges, conflict, as well as having highly dispersed populations across varied types or terrain. They are also pioneers when it comes to mobile phone banking.
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New UNDP Publication: "Creating Value for All: Strategies for Doing Business with the Poor"
September, 03 2008
New York, United States - The first report of UNDP’s Growing Inclusive Markets Initiative and the first such one with such depth and local knowledge, Creating Value for All showcases 50 studies by researchers predominantly from developing countries. These case studies demonstrate the successful pursuit of both revenues and social impact by local and international small- and medium-sized companies, as well as multinational corporations.
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India: Banks Lap Up MFIs' Farm Loans
September, 02 2008
Calcutta, India - Move helps lenders meet agri-lending targets, boosts micro-finance institutions' CAR. Private banks are increasingly buying the farm loan portfolio of micro-finance institutions (MFIs) in an attempt to meet the agriculture sector lending targets
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