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The Rise of a New Asset Class: Can ‘PAYGo Finance’ Connect Investors to Low-Income Customers?
Lendable has pioneered a marketplace lending platform that connects alternative lenders in East Africa with impact and institutional debt investors, to provide financing for leased assets like solar panels and motorcycles. According to BFA, providing these alternative lenders with structured debt financing could potentially give rise to a new asset class: PAYGo finance. If successful in raising funds from investors at scale, the Lendable approach could bring financing for low-income individuals full circle.
- Categories
- Energy, Financial Inclusion, Investing
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Base of startup funding pyramid has shrunk sharply in India; angel, seed deals down
The number of angel and seed investments made in the first half of 2017 (January to June) is down to 260, a sharp drop from 419 in the first half of 2016, according to data from startup analytics firm Tracxn.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- South Asia
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World’s First Social Sustainability Bond Listed on a Stock Exchange
The US$8 million bond provides loans to social enterprises and microfinance institutions, which, in turn, aim to help more than 385,000 women in Cambodia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Non-profits start with energy but lack systems, so struggle for funding: Roopa Kudva of Omidyar Network
Omidyar's most recent investment in India is in Goodera, a for-profit company that helps corporates channel money for CSR activities. India managing director Roopa Kudva , who joined the venture in 2015, explains why financial inclusion is top of its list of priorities.
- Categories
- Financial Inclusion, Investing
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New investment initiative for African startups
Orange Digital Ventures Africa is the Group’s investment vehicle for early-stage innovation projects in Africa in areas such as new connectivities, FinTech, the Internet of Things, energy and e-health.
- Categories
- Investing, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Think twice before investing in a social welfare initiative at your company, study says
By analyzing a sample of information from firms dating back to 1992 until 2014, Javakhadze found that corporate social responsibility programs don't consistently yield sufficient results – be it tangible, in the form of revenue, or intangible, as in company morale – and, consequently, diminish shareholders' returns.
- Categories
- Investing
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Clean Energy Investments Do Not Always Mean a Clean Human Rights Record
Investing in renewable energy seems like a savvy, progressive investor’s ideal scenario. Public policy, popular demand and shifting technologies are all converging to create a potentially high-growth, high-return industry that benefits the environment. But in the transition to renewables, are investors overlooking any issues? Who truly benefits from these investments? Who gets left behind?
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Investing
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Investors and Entrepreneurs in Africa Take Note: Price of Solar’s Dropping While Demand’s Increasing
A number of factors are combining to create a favorable environment for decentralized clean-energy systems – and strong investment opportunities – in emerging markets, according to Ankit Mishra of Premise Data. Most noteworthy, energy use in non-OECD countries is expected to rise by 71 percent through 2040, and the cost of renewable energy is projected to decline rapidly.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Energy, Entrepreneurship, Investing, Technology
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