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Gates Foundation to End Financial Inclusion Support in 2030
Transition to purely commercial funding for initiatives will not be ‘quick or simple.’
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Global
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IFC Study Shows Emerging Market Infrastructure Returns Beat S&P 500
Standard Bank boss Sim Tshabalala has led the chorus calling for relaxed regulations in financing infrastructure.
- Categories
- Finance, Investing, Technology
- Region
- Global
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African Development Bank Secures $11 Billion in Historic Fund
The African Development Bank’s concessional financing arm mobilised a record $11 billion from 43 Partners in its 17th (ADF-17), an amount the multilateral lender said signals confidence in the continent’s development prospects.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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African Development Bank Backs Hyphen with $10 Million Green Hydrogen Project in Namibia
The Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa (SEFA) will provide the loan to support front-end engineering design studies for solar and wind generation, battery energy storage systems, electrolyser capacity and desalination infrastructure.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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AI Risk Management in Digital Finance: Protecting Africa’s Underbanked from Invisible Threats
Digital finance has been a game-changer for financial inclusion across Africa. But as information technology security analyst Nathaniel Adeniyi Akande explains, many communities remain excluded — and though AI-powered lending tools offer new opportunities to reach them, these tools also introduce new risks that can undermine trust or even exclude the people they are designed to serve. He argues that it is digital lenders’ responsibility to anticipate and mitigate these threats, and explores several practices that are essential to AI risk management in the sector.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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African Development Group Group Grants $100 Million Loan to EAAIF to Support Sustainable Infrastructure
The financing, approved by the Board of Directors, will help the Fund attract private investment and support projects in renewable energy, digital connectivity, transport and other key sectors that promote inclusive growth and climate resilience.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Global
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Entrepreneur-Friendly Inclusive Finance: A Survey of Brazilian MSMEs Highlights Key Lessons for Lenders
In Brazil, impact-focused lenders like Estímulo are successfully reaching small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with inclusive lending approaches. But as Carla Grados-Villamar at 60 Decibels and Lucas Conrado at Estímulo explain, inclusive finance is not just about disbursing loans — it’s about understanding entrepreneurs’ realities and adapting accordingly. They share findings from 60 Decibels' interviews with over 400 Estímulo loan applicants, highlighting lessons lenders can use to improve business outcomes for borrowers, and prepare non-borrowers for future credit opportunities.
- Categories
- Finance
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African Development Bank Grants $100 Million Loan to Emerging Africa and Asia Infrastructure Fund
EAAIF aims to invest more than $850 million in infrastructure across Africa and Asia by 2027.
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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