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May 2017
Philippines: Govt’s Micro-Finance Facility Goes Nationwide on May 31
May, 31 2017
Philippines - The Government’s micro-finance facility will be made available nationwide to micro entrepreneurs starting May 31, 2017. The Government’s micro-finance facility will be made available nationwide to micro entrepreneurs starting May 31, 2017. Dubbed as Pondo sa Pagbabago at Pag-asenso (P3), Trade & Industry Undersecretary for Regional Operations Zenaida Maglaya said the administration’s brainchild of micro-finance facility encourages micro entrepreneurs to borrow money from P3 that will help them finance their businesses. “P3 is intended to help the underprivileged Filipino entrepreneurs who want to grow their businesses. With this program, they can access cheap and easy credit without any hassle. After filling out a half-page application and presenting necessary documents, the money can be released within the day,” Maglaya explained ...
New Partnership Aims to Lift Women Microentrepreneurs in Myanmar Out of Poverty
May, 31 2017
Myanmar - From the United Nations to EY, experts have touted the power of microfinance in extending financial inclusion to women in developing countries. A new partnership between the U.S.’ Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) and Early Dawn Microfinance (DAWN) aims to bring that access to low-income women entrepreneurs in Myanmar. ...
A. Simon, CEO, FINCA Impact Finance: The Potential and Limits of the Fintech Revolution in Emerging Markets
May, 30 2017
Global - Innovations in financial services technologies help expand on the mission of responsible micro-lending. But we must be mindful of the drawbacks. ...
Zimbabwe: Most Bank Loans in Credit Registry
May, 30 2017
Zimbabwe - Eighty-four percent of loans in the banking sector have been uploaded to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s credit registry, which went live recently, the Office of the President and Cabinet, which is spearheading doing business reforms, said. The percentage figure represents 314 833 out of a total of 371 485 bank loans extended to 361 525 individuals and 9 960 firms since the RBZ’s credit registry became operational in January this year, the OPC said in an update statement yesterday ...
How Rwanda Can Accelerate Uptake of Financial Technology
May, 30 2017
Rwanda - New products, including cross-border mobile money transfers, e-government payment facilities and e-savings services by telecoms, among others, have been rolled out, pushing banks to come up with more strategic interventions to stay relevant and competitive ...
Global ATM Market to Grow at 9.8% CAGR from 2016 to 2023
May, 30 2017
Global - According to Global Market Insights, Inc., Global ATM market size worth USD 12.5 billion in 2015, is estimated to register a CAGR of 9.8% over the coming six years. Expanding financial service industry along with growing transactional security concerns will stimulate ATM market share over the coming years of 2016 to 2023. ...
Philippines: BSP Liberalizes Micro-banking Functions
May, 30 2017
Philippines - Incoming Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Nestor Espenilla Jr. said the central bank will further liberalize micro-banking offices (MBOs) to operate as light branch with more functions beyond microlending ...
Africa to Increase Insurance Penetration, Financial Inclusion
May, 29 2017
Sub-Saharan Africa - Insurance operators and regulators at the just-concluded General Assembly of the 44th African Insurance Organisation Conference, have passed a resolution to work on six common goals to advance the US$64 billion market ...
Africa’s Quest for a Cashless Economy Gains Momentum
May, 29 2017
Sub-Saharan Africa - “Transferring the money took less than a minute,” Ahmed told Africa Renewal. A leading Liberian telecom company, Lonestar Cell MTN, launched mobile money in the country in 2013. Since then, Ahmed says, “I pay my electricity, water and cable television bills through my cell phone.” Last year, the company announced it will offer transfers in both US and Liberian dollars — a relief for customers who must currently use the US dollar for payments ...
Sri Lanka: Microfinance Practioners Seek Policy Support for Sustainable Industry
May, 29 2017
Sri Lanka - The industry association of the microfinance practitioners, Lanka Microfinance Practitioner’s Association (LMFPA), last week sought the assistance of policy makers and regulator to create a sustainable microfinance industry in the country ...
India: Payments Banks Have an Opportunity in the Millions of Unbanked, But Are These Viable?
May, 29 2017
India - The model of the payments bank might turn out to be one that wallets specialise in: a high-volume, low-margin game ...
Egypt: Banks Obliged to Separate Microfinance from Retail Loans
May, 28 2017
Egypt - Trial project between civil associations and banks to benefit from digital services in obtaining financing and instalment payments, according to the CBE governor ...
Egypt: Law Controlling Work of Microfinance Companies Encourages Banks to Finance Them
May, 28 2017
Egypt - The CBE's initiative supports these bodies before international financing institutions, young people and women are the largest benefiters ...
Egypt:1.8m People Benefited from Microfinance Loans Until the End of 2016
May, 28 2017
Egypt - The number of beneficiaries of micro-loans provided by companies and civil society associations specialised in this activity reached some 1.8 million people until the end of 2016, according to the chairperson of the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority (EFSA), Sherif Samy ...
New Project to Enhance Rural Incomes for Over 200,000 Small-holder Households in Jharkhand, India
May, 26 2017
India - The World Bank will support the Government of Jharkhand in enhancing and diversifying household incomes in the farm and non-farm sectors of Jharkhand ...
Innovation in Mobile Money: What Are the Risks?
May, 25 2017
Global - Imagine receiving a call from your bank inquiring about several mobile banking transfers on your account that had been initiated from your phone without your knowledge. This is just one example of the emerging types of fraud being experienced by mobile money users across the globe ...
Zimbabwe: To what Extent Can Agricultural Economy Be Driven by Microfinance?
May, 25 2017
Zimbabwe - Recent information from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) shows that the country now has 182 registered Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs), of which four have been registered to take financial deposits. The number of MFIs is likely to continue growing. What does this mean for a country that is trying to revive and grow its economy through agriculture and mining ...
WB’s IFC Boosts Romanian Agribusiness, More Access to Finance for Farmers
May, 25 2017
Romania - IFC (International Financial Corporation), member of the World Bank Group, grants RON 70 million loan to Agricover Credit IFN to increase access to finance for farmers in Romania and support the country’s important agribusiness sector, a press release inform ...
Affordable Capital for Small Businesses and Other Innovative Vehicles for the Impact Investing World
May, 24 2017
Global - There’s a new impact investing financing vehicle social entrepreneurs might want to know about. It's also the latest in a series of innovations in the impact investing world, ranging from the Ford Foundation's committing up to $1 billion in mission-related investments to new online impact investment marketplaces ...
Rwanda: MFIs Tipped on Consumer Protection
May, 24 2017
Rwanda - The majority of microfinance institutions customers do not know their rights, a situation that exposes them to risks and also affects efforts geared at deepening financial inclusion, experts from micro-finance institutions have said ...
Cambodia: Government Launches $60 Million Project to Help Small Farmers
May, 24 2017
Cambodia - The government yesterday launched the first phase of a project to help 15,000 farming families commercialize their operations and bring their produce—rice, cassava, chickens and silk—to market ...
How Technology Is Opening The Way for Financial Inclusion Of World's 2 Billion Unbanked
May, 24 2017
Global - Consider some of the services you probably rely on your bank to provide: safekeeping, payments processing, and the occasional credit. Your bank also likely facilitates certain intangibles: your sense of financial inclusion, job market participation, and household security. Without these you would easily be vulnerable to potential exclusion and economic prejudice ...
IFC and Garanti Leasing Support Women Entrepreneurs in Romania
May, 24 2017
Romania - IFC, member of the World Bank Group, has provided an EUR 5 million loan to Garanti Leasing, part of Garanti Romania, one of the most dynamic financial groups on the local market, for financing small and medium enterprises (SMEs) owned or managed by women ...
Rural Women Benefit from NE China Business Microcredit Scheme
May, 23 2017
China - Fushun, a city in northeast China's Liaoning Province, has invested a total of 2.8 billion yuan (U.S.$ 406.3 million) into a subsidized microcredit scheme to help rural women start up their own agricultural businesses ...
World Bank Group’s New Strategy in Kosovo Spurs Investment and Export-Oriented Growth
May, 23 2017
Kosovo - The new World Bank Group (WBG) Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Kosovo for 2017-21 aims to assist the country in moving toward more sustainable, export-oriented, and inclusive growth, so its citizens are provided more opportunities for a better life ...
ADB Approves $20 Million Loan to Increase Credit Access in Pakistan
May, 23 2017
Pakistan - The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $20 million loan to help Pakistan’s Khushhali Microfinance Bank (KMBL) to expand access to credit for agriculture-related borrowers and small businesses ...
Malaysia Shares Lessons on Achieving High Financial Inclusion for Other Countries
May, 23 2017
Malaysia - Malaysia has achieved one of the highest levels of financial inclusion among Southeast Asia countries, due in part to policies taking advantage of mobile phones and banking agents to expand access, according to a recent World Bank report ...
Philippines: DoF Cites Cash Transfers, Microfinance Lending Role in Reducing Poverty Incidence
May, 23 2017
Philippines - Greater financial inclusion through conditional cash transfers (CCT), and microfinance were cited as key drivers in reducing poverty, alongside infrastructure development, according to a study from the Department of Finance’s (DoF) chief economist ...
Incofin Sells 55% Equity Stake in Colombian Microfinance Institution Crezcamos to Its Founder, Mauricio Osorio
May, 22 2017
Colombia - Belgium’s Incofin Investment Management recently informed MicroCapital that its Rural Impulse Funds I and II have sold all of their shares of Crezcamos, a Colombian microfinance institution (MFI), to Mauricio Osorio, the founder and general manager of Crezcamos. While the prices of the stakes, which totaled 55.2 percent of the shares of the MFI, were not disclosed, Incofin reports that each fund earned an “attractive double-digit return. ...
Malaysia: Microfinance in Malaysia Benefited over One Million Entreprises, Says Bank Negara
May, 22 2017
- Malaysia’s microfinance landscape, which has evolved from being government-driven into one with vibrant private sector participation, has benefited more than one million micro enterprises in the country, said Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) ...
Rwanda Revises SACCOs System to Allow Cooperative Bank Kick Off
May, 22 2017
Rwanda - Rwanda has secured a shareholder that will top up 40% needed to establish a cooperative bank that will be fully operational by 2018 ...
Morgan Stanley and The Economist Intelligence Unit Release New Index to Support Investment in Inclusive Growth
May, 19 2017
- Inclusive Growth Opportunities Index helps investors identify technology investments in thematic areas to overcome inequality and enable broad-based participation in economic progres ...
Impact Investing Growth Continues as Industry Begins Tracking to SDGs
May, 19 2017
Global - If you’ve heard that impact investing is growing and that investors are mapping their investments to the Sustainable Development Goals, but wondered if that’s true, now there’s evidence. The Global Impact Investing Network released its annual impact investing report this week and several of its findings point to continued growth of the sector. ...
Morgan Stanley Raised $125 Million for a New Fund - and it Highlights One of the Hottest Trends in Investing
May, 19 2017
Global - The bank has raised $125 million in commitments for its first global impact fund. It will invest in private-equity funds that demonstrate they positively affect the environment or society while delivering strong financial returns. Morgan Stanley says it believes this is the largest impact fund of funds in existence ...
Cambodia: MFI Slowdown: Real or Illusory?
May, 19 2017
Cambodia - After several years of rapid growth, the expansion of credit provided by the Kingdom’s myriad microfinance institutions (MFIs) stalled abruptly last year, raising concerns poorer Cambodians could be pushed toward loan sharks to obtain credit or cover their debts, the World Bank said in its latest economic update on Cambodia ...
India: Microlender Arohan Raises $24 Mn from Denmark’s Maj Invest, Others
May, 19 2017
India - Kolkata-based Arohan Financial Services Pvt. Ltd has raised Rs 155.5 crore ($24.1 million) from new and existing investors to expand its operations, the microfinance institution said in a statement ...
Norway Development Fund Bets Big on African Finance
May, 19 2017
Africa - The $2 billion fund, which is more and more concentrating its investments in sub-Saharan Africa, placed more than half its new capital last year in financial institutions. That focus helped salvage returns last year. ...
India: Paytm Gets $1.4 Billion from SoftBank to Help Expand Digital Financial Services
May, 19 2017
India - In what is said to be the largest round from a single investor, Paytm raised $1.4 billion of funding from SoftBank. The funding will allow the digital payments service to expand its user base in the country and build a suite of financial services. ...
Nigeria: Apex Bank Set to Recommence Disbursement of Micro, Medium Enterprises Fund
May, 18 2017
Nigeria - The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it will soon recommence the disbursement of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF) to micro, small and medium businesses. Dr Mudashiru Olaitan, the Director, Development Finance, CBN stated that the apex bank is in the process of overhauling the disbursement process ...
Recovery of Micro-Finance Loans Still a Concern Post Demonetisation: India Ratings
May, 18 2017
India - The improvement in currency circulation is likely to normalise the situation and bring relief to the sector. However, local geographical issues such as political interventions and loan waivers remain key imponderables ...
One-third of Adults in Vanuatu Are Financially Excluded
May, 17 2017
Vanatu - A consumer survey conducted last year on the demand for financial services in Vanuatu found that 32% of Ni-Vanuatu adults are completely excluded from financial services ...
Kenya: Vodacom to Buy R35bn Stake in Safaricom
May, 17 2017
Kenya - The deal, which involves Vodacom acquiring 35% in Kenya's largest mobile network operator, is seen as a vote of confidence in Vodacom's management and is part of Vodafone's strategy to consolidate some of its African businesses under the umbrella of its subsidiary ...
IDB-UNDP Report Identifies Steps to Leverage Islamic Finance for Impact Investing
May, 16 2017
Global - The Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) on Monday launched a new report that spells out the potentials of Islamic finance in impact investment for the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) ...
India: Brave Bankers
May, 16 2017
India - There has been a flurry of activity in the financial sector. As we go to press, six small finance banks - a new category of banks to advance the governments financial inclusion agenda - have started operations, out of the 10 that had got the Reserve Bank of India's, or RBI's, "in-principal" approval in September 2015 ...
M. Fernandes, LeapFrog: Two Billion Emerging Consumers are Only a Handset Away From Financial Inclusion
May, 16 2017
Global - However, with mobile technology rallying across the emerging markets, the tools to turn the tide on financial inclusion are finally within reach. India is home to 1 billion mobile users, creating a vast opportunity to enable millions of consumers to access financial services through a simple handset ...
India: Route One Fund Buys Stake in Bharat Financial for Rs99 Crore
May, 15 2017
India - Route One Fund bought 0.88% stake in Bharat Financial Inclusion for nearly Rs99 crore, through an open market transactio ...
India: Disha Microfin Receives RBI Licence to Form Small Finance Bank
May, 12 2017
India - Disha Microfin’s new entity will be called Fincare Small Finance Bank and will start operations in July, the company sai ...
India: Private Equity, Venture Capital Exits Worth $1 Billion Recorded in April
May, 12 2017
India - Private equity and venture capital exits in 2017 now total $3 billion, which is 46% of the aggregate value recorded in 201 ...
Fintech in Microfinance: In Search of the High-Tech High-Touch Unicorn?
May, 11 2017
Global - Exploiting fintech opportunities in microfinance won’t come easy, but MFIs that fail to search for the unicorn risk succumbing to nimbler competitors, or at minimum, will offer their clients suboptimal, lower impact services. ...
d.light Partners with Microfinance Institution Musoni for Off-grid Solar in Kenya
May, 11 2017
Kenya - Off-grid solar product distributor d.light has partnered with cloud-based microfinance institution Musoni to expand access to solar for low-income consumers in Kenya ...
Sub-Saharan Africa: Can Digital Savings Reduce Risks in Digital Credit?
May, 10 2017
Sub-Saharan Africa - When the financial inclusion community talks about innovative digital credit and savings products these days, it seems like we focus almost exclusively on the credit side. ...
G. White, Co-Founder, Water.org & WaterEquity: World Bank Spring Meetings - All About a Future That Leaves No One Behind
May, 10 2017
USA - Conventional attitudes about how to help “the poor” (that assume the millions of people who live below the poverty line represent a homogeneous market) will not be enough. We have to think creatively, push the boundaries of our comfort zones, and reach for a future that leaves no one behind ...
G. White, Co-Founder, Water.org & WaterEquity: World Bank Spring Meetings - All About a Future That Leaves No One Behind
May, 10 2017
USA - Conventional attitudes about how to help “the poor” (that assume the millions of people who live below the poverty line represent a homogeneous market) will not be enough. We have to think creatively, push the boundaries of our comfort zones, and reach for a future that leaves no one behind ...
Blockchain: A Revolutionary Catalyst for Financial Inclusiveness
May, 09 2017
Global - A recent World Economic Forum roundtable discussion reviewed how technology can help the UN reach its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In particular, blockchain — a new distributed platform — is uniquely positioned to accelerate the movement towards greater financial inclusiveness, solving hunger and poverty, and creating sustainable jobs ...
India: IFC-JICA to Co-finance $1.5 Billion in Emerging Market Projects
May, 09 2017
India - The IFC-JICA partnership aims to modernize infrastructure and expand access to basic services for underserved communities in emerging markets ...
India : IFC-JICA to Co-finance $1.5 Billion in Emerging Market Projects
May, 09 2017
India - The IFC-JICA partnership aims to modernize infrastructure and expand access to basic services for underserved communities in emerging markets ...
Development Bank of Nigeria – As Inclusive As It Promises?
May, 09 2017
Nigeria - The Development Bank of Nigeria (DBN) was conceived in 2014 and this year it has come into fruition with the green light from the Federal Executive Council on April 5th ...
EU Bank Introduces Financial Instruments to Support Georgian SMEs
May, 08 2017
Georgia - Delivering on its key objective of private sector development in Georgia, the EIB Group (European Investment Bank and European Investment Fund) is implementing two new programs developed jointly with the European Commission, both of which were prepared in the context of the Association Agreement of Georgia with the EU: the DCFTA Initiative East and the EU Research and Innovation Program Horizon 2020: InnovFin – EU Finance for Innovators ...
IFC Assists Vietnam with Sustainable Agricultural Production
May, 08 2017
Vietnam - International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has invested 230 billion VND (approximately 10.2 million USD) in PAN Farm JSC to support the expansion of its seed business, which is suitable for local weather conditions in the Mekong Delta and the south central coastal regions. ...
FINCA Microfinance Bank First in Pakistan to Receive Client Protection Certification
May, 08 2017
Pakistan - FINCA Microfinance Bank in Pakistan, one of the fastest growing in the country, announced today it received the Smart Certification recognizing its deep commitment to client protection. ...
FINCA Microfinance Bank First in Pakistan to Receive Client Protection Certification
May, 08 2017
Pakistan - FINCA Microfinance Bank in Pakistan, one of the fastest growing in the country, announced today it received the Smart Certification recognizing its deep commitment to client protection. ...
Meeting Education Finance Needs in Rural Uganda
May, 08 2017
Uganda - Paying for their children’s education is one of the biggest challenges and most important goals for rural Ugandans like Christine and Fred. InterMedia’s Financial Inclusion Insights survey found that 84 percent of Ugandans have at some point lacked funds to pay for part or all of their families’ school costs. The result is that their children are sent home and kept from school until parents are able to pay. ...
Zimbabwe: Turning Goats Into 'Cash-Cows'
May, 07 2017
Zimbabwe - So, while the idea of livestock as collateral for loan may be a plausible one and one that might even be considered innovative, it is hard to imagine the use of livestock as a currency ...
Fintech Trends in Emerging Markets
May, 07 2017
Global - In the developing parts of the world, fintech offers financial services to millions of unbanked people.It’s an important innovative tool in ensuring financial inclusion. ...
Urgent Reforms Needed to Ensure Africa Creates the 450m Jobs it Needs in 20 Years
May, 05 2017
Africa - The report highlighted several short-term priority actions to improve competitiveness, including the prioritisation of sector-specific reforms in labour-intensive sectors such as agribusiness, construction and microenterprises ...
US Agency OPIC to Inject $5m Debt Facility in Myanmar MFI DAWN
May, 03 2017
- US government agency Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) is making a debt capital investment of $5 million in Early Dawn Microfinance Company Ltd (DAWN), a Yangon based deposit-taking micro-lender ...
India: The Rise Fund Invests in Dodla Dairy Limited
May, 03 2017
India - The Rise Fund, a global fund committed to achieving measureable, positive social and environmental outcomes alongside competitive financial returns, today announced it has agreed to invest $50M in Dodla Dairy Limited (Dodla), a fresh dairy product company offering a wide range of milk products throughout South India ...
The Rise Fund Invests in Dodla Dairy Limited
May, 03 2017
India - The Rise Fund, a global fund committed to achieving measureable, positive social and environmental outcomes alongside competitive financial returns, today announced it has agreed to invest $50M in Dodla Dairy Limited (Dodla), a fresh dairy product company offering a wide range of milk products throughout South India ...
Ghana, Uganda, Malawi: Savings Groups Boost Financial Inclusion and Women’s Empowerment Among Rural Poor, Three-country Study Finds
May, 02 2017
Ghana, Uganda, Malawi - Savings groups popular in rural areas of developing countries — in which people pool money for saving and borrowing — empower women, increase business investment, and provide greater access to financial services, according to a three-country study released in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ...
IFC and Myanmar Central Bank Promote New Credit Reporting Regulation
May, 01 2017
Myanmar - IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has successfully supported the Central Bank of Myanmar to develop a regulation for credit reporting—a key step in building up modern financial infrastructures that are necessary to improve access to credit for consumers and micro, small and medium enterprises in the country ...

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