NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

IFC has announced its investment in Arnur Credit, a Kazakhstan-based microfinance institution to boost its financing for MSEs, with a focus on women-owned businesses and smaller businesses in the country’s underserved southern frontier regions.

IFC’s $9 million investment in Arnur Credit, will be allocated to rural-based MSEs, with half earmarked for women-owned micro and smaller businesses. With 44 sub-offices, Arnur Credit has established a wide reach across the country’s Kyzylorda, Turkistan, Zhambyl and Almaty regions as well as in Almaty and Shymkent cities. That has enabled the organization to serve smaller businesses and farmers in remote and rural areas, where financial services are often limited, helping to promote economic development.

Photo courtesy of WorldSkills.