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Beyond Risk: How Addressing Transaction Costs Can Boost Lending to Agricultural SMEs in Africa
Providing loans to agricultural enterprises in East Africa can be a complicated task, with challenges ranging from higher origination costs to arduous journeys to conduct due diligence. As Brian Milder of Aceli Africa explains, that makes many lenders reluctant to serve these businesses — and this lack of capital is stunting the growth of local agri-SMEs. In this third article in a four-part series, he explores the barriers to financing in the industry – particularly the under-recognized role of high transaction costs in limiting capital flows – and shares how Aceli is addressing them.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Investing
- Tags
- impact investing, lending
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Press Release: Kiva Capital Management Announces Final Close of Kiva Refugee Investment Fund to Scale Lending to Fragile Communities Globally
Kiva Capital Management, the impact-first fund management subsidiary of non-profit Kiva.org, announced today the successful final close of the Kiva Refugee Investment Fund, LLC, a $32.5 million facility to scale lending to fragile communities globally.
- Categories
- Finance
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Togo: Microfinance Institutions Slow Down on Lending as Overdue Loans Spike Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
Amid the Covid-19 pandemic, microfinance institutions active in Togo considerably lowered loans to the public in the nine first months of 2020.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Two Former Coinbase Employees Are Building a DeFi Lending Protocol for Emerging Markets
A pair of former Coinbase employees are launching a new protocol that aims to advance one of the DeFi space’s primary use cases — decentralized lending — in the world’s emerging markets.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Press Release: The Risk Management Association Survey Finds ESG Investing and Securities Lending Can Coexist
A new survey of leading institutional investors released today by The Risk Management Association (RMA) revealed that 95% of respondents believe that securities lending activities can coexist with Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) principles.
- Categories
- Environment, Investing
- Tags
- ESG, governance, impact investing, lending
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Viewpoint: COVID-19 Lockdown: How Digital Lenders Can Contribute To Financial Inclusion in India
By introducing non-traditional sources of credit to a credit-starved population and small businesses, fintech lenders can help people get easy access to capital.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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How COVID-19 Will Reshape Islamic Finance Markets
Since the inception of the Islamic finance industry in the 1970s, there has been a steady growth in demand for sharia-compliant products and services and the industry’s total assets reached US$2.5 trillion globally in 2019.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
- Tags
- ESG, lending, microfinance
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Tackling the COVID-19 Coffee Crisis: Can Blockchain Strengthen the Link Between Producers and Buyers?
COVID-19 is having a major negative impact on many sectors, and the coffee industry is no exception. The closing of restaurants and cafes has reduced consumption, and according to Isabel van Bemmelen at the Progreso Foundation, coffee producers have been especially hard hit. She explores a blockchain-driven solution that could help producers survive the pandemic.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Coronavirus, Transportation
- Tags
- blockchain, COVID-19, employment, lending
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