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Financial Inclusion in Focus in India, but Bank Loans to Micro Sector Fall 5.5%
State-run banks may have created a record with opening of Jan Dhan accounts, but when it comes to lending to the poor, they are actually faltering. Bank loans to the micro sector, the target group of the government's financial inclusion drive and Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), have fallen 5.5% over the last 14 months, according to data from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Ethical Investments: Lack of Awareness Means Investors Are Supporting Industries They Oppose
Liz Berwick is a fairly typical saver. The 35-year-old mother of two hopes to put away around £3,000 this year by saving regularly into a tax-free Isa. The question is, where?
- Categories
- Environment
- Tags
- impact investing, lending
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Lending to Poor Farmers: Seeding the Market
“Coffee is our gateway drug,” jokes Willy Foote, founder of Root Capital. “Then we move on to harder stuff, like cocoa, cashews, quinoa and sorghum.” That is how the firm got started in 1999, after Mr Foote quit his job as a Wall Street analyst, lending $73,000 to a coffee (and cardamom) co-operative in Guatemala. It has since expanded to 25 countries in Latin America and Africa, and in December set up shop in Indonesia, with a loan of $550,000 to an organic coffee co-operative.
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- Agriculture
- Tags
- lending
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NexThought Monday – The (Financial) Wisdom of the Crowd: How a group of non-experts outperformed traditional credit ratings at identifying good and bad borrowers
Determining risk has always been a hurdle for lenders, and a barrier for small businesses looking to expand. Non-traditional credit scoring could help - but is it dependable? A new Harvard study on a crowdsourced credit scoring approach found it predicted defaults with 45 percent greater accuracy than standard credit scores.
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- Technology
- Tags
- credit scoring, lending
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PRESS RELEASE: Free Loan-Repayment Processing Helps Grameen America Increase Macro Impact on Women
Through PayNearMe, Grameen America Borrowers Gain Convenient Option to Repay Loans at 7,800 7-Eleven Stores Nationwide, as Grameen Expands Solution to California and New York.
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- Uncategorized
- Tags
- lending, microfinance
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World Bank to boost India’s MSME sector through $500 million loan
The World Bank on Monday approved a $500 million loan for the MSME Growth Innovation and Inclusive Finance Project to improve access to finance for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) working in the manufacturing and services sector at an early stage.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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PRESS RELEASE: Deutsche Bank Marks Milestone for USD $83 Million Microfinance Fund
The Fund reached 5.5 million low-income and rural borrowers in 15 countries
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Tags
- lending, microfinance
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Kompanion Financial Group Completes Equity Raise with Investment from FMO and Triodos Investment Management
Kompanion Financial Group, one of the largest microfinance institutions in the Kyrgyz Republic both by loan portfolio and number of clients, has concluded an equity raise selling a 35% stake to international investors. The shares were purchased by Netherlands based investors FMO and Triodos Investment Management, with the latter investing through Triodos Fair Share Fund and Triodos Microfinance Fund. Kompanion’s founder Mercy Corps will remain majority shareholder and hold a 65% stake. The funds will be used for growth capital in the lending operations and support Kompanion’s transformation to a licensed banking institution.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Europe & Eurasia
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