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Behind the Most Successful Microfinance IPO in India’s History: What does gender lens investing have to do with it?
The recent domestic IPO for the Indian microfinance firm Ujjivan far exceeded the domestic-only IPO record set by another microfinance firm just days earlier. As a $50 million inclusive finance company focused on women in the lowest economic strata, Ujjivan's success is a powerful statement about the value of serving low-income women with financial services, and the ability of mission-aligned investors to help them achieve impressive returns, both social and financial.
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- Investing
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Amid India’s Drought Crisis, Suicides Increase Among Farmers Deep In Debt
In India, two consecutive years of weak monsoons have left some 330 million people – a quarter of the country – in the grip of drought. Deepening the crisis, farmers are taking their lives.
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- Health Care
- Region
- South Asia
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Letter from Mindanao, Part 1: The impact of ASEAN integration on banking in the Philippines
On January 1st, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations' 10 member countries inaugurated the ASEAN Economic Community, a common market whose goal is to forge a prominent regional bloc and bring economic well-being to its 625 million citizens. How will the integration affect banks in the region? In a recent trip to the Philippines, Bruce MacDonald sought the perspectives of government and central bank officials and private bankers.
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- Uncategorized
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Africa Accounts for Only 1.4% of World Insurance Premium
The African Insurance Organisation, AIO, has decried the low level of insurance penetration in Africa, saying that the continent can boast of only about 1.4 per cent of total world premium. President of AIO, Mrs. Lamia Ben Mahmoud who made the assertion at the 43rd Conference and Annual General Assembly of the AIO in Marrakech, Morocco last week noted that there is clear predominance of developed countries on the insurance market.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Serve Rural Areas or Lose License, Central Bank of Nepal Governor Tells Microfinance Institutions
Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) Governor Chiranjibi Nepal has warned that the central bank may scrap the license of microfinance institutions who fail to reach rural areas of the country.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Acumen Launches Acumen America to Tackle Poverty in the United States in Partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Barclays and The Hitachi Foundation
Acumen, the nonprofit global venture fund, announced today the launch of Acumen America, a portfolio of American social enterprises focused on tackling poverty within the United States. Since its founding in 2001, Acumen has invested $101 million to build nearly 100 innovative enterprises addressing the problems of poverty in Africa, South Asia and Latin America. Now, after 15 years, the organization is bringing its impact investing model to the U.S. to help address the biggest issues facing the nearly 47 million people living in poverty. With the support of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Barclays and The Hitachi Foundation, Acumen is building a portfolio of U.S. companies with a focus on health, workforce development and financial inclusion.
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- Uncategorized
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Aspen Institute Launches Intense Investigations Into Emerging Threats to the Financial Security of American Families
The Aspen Institute today launched an ambitious, first-of-its-kind project to shine light on economic forces that severely impact the financial security of American families. The Expanding Prosperity Impact Collaborative (EPIC) is an unparalleled effort to identify consumer finance issues that have widespread, mainstream import but are unexplored relative to their consequences for millions of Americans. EPIC will connect diverse, multi-sector teams of experts to deeply analyze the current state of knowledge on these vital issues and deliver a fresh framework upon which policymakers and industry leaders can build evidence-based solutions. EPIC will raise the profile of misunderstood and overlooked economic challenges and bring unconventional insights to thought leaders and decision-makers.
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- Uncategorized
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Viewpoint: The Challenges of Mobile Financial Inclusion
One of the gating factors to financial inclusion is the mobile network itself. It sounds simple to say that all of Africa can have access to mobile money, and they can, but if each telco has different wallet structures, charges and fees, then the ease of usage falls sharply. This is why interoperability is a key factor and Tanzania leads the way in this regard.
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- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa