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FINCA Azerbaijan Announces Major Expansion Plan
January, 31 2019
Azerbaijan - After 3 years of challenging macroeconomic conditions FINCA plans to open 8 new regional branches in 2019, reaching more people with more flexible services at lower cost
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P. Hildebrand, B. Deese, BlackRock: Better Data Makes Sustainable Investing Pay
January, 31 2019
Global - A decade ago, investors who considered themselves “serious” would smirk into their brandy if you brought up sustainable investing. And that attitude wasn’t entirely unreasonable. Back then investing sustainably meant trading returns for values. We lacked the data and analytical frameworks to make such considerations an advantage rather than an obstacle
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Can Mobile Money Boost Financial Inclusion in Southern Africa?
January, 30 2019
Southern Africa - Mobile money offers opportunities for the unbanked to save, spend, and transfer money using just a cell phone. Linda Du ’19, an MBA student at Yale SOM, traveled to Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique to talk with providers, customers, and others about the technology’s potential to give the poor access to the financial system
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Impact Investing Is Driving the Most Exciting Emerging Technologies
January, 30 2019
Global - “The advent of very powerful emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, robotics, blockchain, and XR can make big differences when combined with smart money coming from venture capital,” he said. “The combination of the two has been the best that has ever happened to make sustainable development goals a reality.
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FINCA Armenia Receives Smart Certification for Strong Client Protection Practices
January, 25 2019
Armenia - One of 20 banks and microfinance institutions comprising the FINCA Impact Finance (FIF) network, FINCA Armenia joins FIF subsidiaries in Ecuador, Georgia, Kosovo, Kyrgyzstan, Nicaragua and Pakistan in receiving Certification from the Smart Campaign, a global initiative promoting prudent, transparent and respectful treatment of clients. It is the first institution in Armenia to be certified
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India: The Rural Credit Rush
January, 25 2019
India - Microfinance firms and fintechs are looking to cash in on demand for credit in rural India which is expected to rise along with a surge in consumption.
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China Sees Fewer Micro-credit Firms
January, 25 2019
China - China continued to see fewer micro-credit firms last year amid tightening regulations on malpractice in the sector, data showed Friday
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Why There’s so much Push for ESG Investing
January, 24 2019
Global - The following article from Nicolas Pelletier, investment manager for Switzerland’s REYL & Cie Bank, writes about the forces driving interest in harnessing capital to achieve environmental, social and governance goals. This continues a pattern of debate about ESG-based approaches and promises to remain a hot theme this year
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New Standard to Drive Global Finance Closer to the SDGs
January, 23 2019
Global - Today, the non-profit organization Verra launched the “Sustainable Development Verified Impact Standard”. Under SD VISta, projects must demonstrate to the satisfaction of a third-party assessor that they advance the SDGs. The standard requires direct alignment with SDG targets
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India: Financial Inclusion Is Fast Losing Steam
January, 23 2019
India - The recent Report on Trend and Progress of Banking in India 2017-18 points out some early signs of slowdown in financial inclusion (FI) efforts. This could undermine the formidable achievement so far in the journey of taking banking to the masses to ameliorate poverty. Amidst the asset quality mess and its multiplier impact, banks seem to be losing appetite to pursue FI
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Kazakhstan: Microcredit Recipients Additionally Created over 12.6 Thousand Jobs
January, 22 2019
Kazakhstan - Jan. 22 at the Government meeting chaired by Prime Minister Bakytzhan Sagintayev, the progress in the implementation of the President's Five Social Initiatives was reviewed. Minister of Labor and Social Protection of the Population Madina Abylkassymova and the first vice ministers of agriculture Arman Yevniev, national economy Ruslan Dalenov reported on the fulfillment of the fourth direction “Expansion of Microcredit.
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The State of Socially Responsible Investing
January, 17 2019
Global - In the beginning of 2018, $11.6 trillion of all professionally managed assets—one $1 of every $4 invested in the United States—were under ESG investment strategies, a sharp increase from 2010, when the amount was close to just $3 trillion overall
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The New Era of Refugee Investing
January, 14 2019
Global - The Refugee Investment Network (RIN) was established in 2018 to take a closer look at the manifold socio-economic issues affecting refugees, and to create new pathways for investment, jobs creation, and sustainable economic growth among forcibly displaced people.
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African Land Restoration Draws Investors
January, 11 2019
Africa - Globally, these projects, which are based on sustainable business models in agriculture and land use, could be worth up to $2.3 trillion and provide more than 70 million jobs by 2030 in an area where poverty and unemployment plague the population
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India Has a Growing Impact Investing Industry, but Can it Scale?
January, 10 2019
India - Many eyes are on India to see if it can succeed in building a robust domestic impact investing industry and what role it can play in the country’s development efforts. While the country has a much larger market than most, lessons learned there could help efforts elsewhere
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Mexico Launches Major Initiative to Boost Financial Sector
January, 09 2019
Mexico - The project, which touches on technology, services, market incentives, fees and financial inclusion, is the product of months of discussions between the heads of Mexico's private financial institutions, the central bank and the incoming finance ministry under President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO)
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Nigeria: Financial Inclusion, Savings Promos Yield 15m New Accounts for Banks
January, 07 2019
Nigeria - Financial Vanguard analysis of latest Industry Customer Bank Account data released by the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) showed that the number of bank accounts rose to 115.2 million in November, 2018 from 100.2 million in December 2017, representing 15 million or 15 percent increase
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FINCA Impact Finance Subsidiary in Armenia Issues $2.8 Million Bond Offering
January, 03 2019
Armenia - FINCA Armenia announced the issuance of AMD 1.4 billion (USD 2.8 million) in nominal, non-documentary coupon bonds, further diversifying its funding base. Each three-year coupon bond has a nominal value of AMD 10,000 and a semi-annual coupon rate of 10.5%. The issuance is the first of three tranches the institution plans to issue over the next year, with a total value of USD 10 million.
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Zimbabwe Amends Microfinance Act
January, 02 2019
Zimbabwe - Following the bids by microfinanciers, government last Friday gazetted the Microfinance Amendment Bill stating that the Bill will amend the Microfinance Act (Chapter 24:30) extending the tenure of licences to a five-year period, removing perpetual registrations and renewals
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