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Breaking the Myths of Microfinance
A poor woman approaches a microfinance lender along with a couple of her neighbours and friends.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- lending, microfinance
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Posta Uganda to Launch Financial Services
Posta Uganda will launch financial services to use its country wide postal networks to promote financial inclusion especially the unbanked rural communities.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Needed: Naïve People with Stupid Ideas: An interview with Intellecap co-founder and director Vineet Rai
When Intellecap was founded in 2002, few people would have predicted that it would become a social business and investing powerhouse. According to co-founder and director Vineet Rai, the company’s early years were defined by failure. He discusses the lessons he learned from these failures (and subsequent successes), Intellecap’s unique model and future plans, and many other topics in this wide-ranging video Q&A.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment, Social Enterprise
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Tencent’s WeBank Finds Sweet Spot in Microloans in China
Seven months after its launch, Tencent-backed (00700.HK) WeBank is showing off some of its first financial accomplishments that hint at the direction it may take as it carves out a place in China’s banking sector.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- microfinance
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Islamic banking consistently expanding in Pakistan
Last week, the State Bank of Pakistan granted its first license to a micro-finance bank and brought it into the Islamic mode.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Mutual Funds in India Invest $157M in Secured Debentures of Microfinance Institutions
Several mutual funds based in India, including Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) Prudential Mutual Fund, Housing Development Finance Corporation (HDFC) Mutual Fund, Kotak Mutual Fund, Reliance Mutual Fund and State Bank of India (SBI) Mutual Fund, recently invested in secured debentures issued by several Indian microfinance institutions (MFIs). The issuers include Equitas Microfinance (Equitas); Janalakshmi Financial Services (JFS); SKS Microfinance (SKS) and Ujjivan Financial Services (Ujjivan). Although the individual transaction amounts are not available, the investments by the mutual funds total approximately INR 10 billion (USD 157 million). The debentures bear coupon rates of 11.5 up to 13 percent, approximately 3 to 4 percent above than highly rated securities issued by other Indian companies. The securities are backed by receivables and fixed assets owned by the MFIs.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Grameen Koota Reaches Milestone With 1 Million Microfinance Customers
Bangalore-based NBFC –MFI, Grameen Koota Financial Services Pvt Ltd (Grameen Koota) has reached a new milestone of 1 million microfinance customers, in a testimony to its strong client-centric approach aimed at providing holistic financial and social services.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- lending, microfinance
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June’s Most Popular Posts on NextBillion: From microfinance ‘haters’ to M-PESA challengers
Our most-read and most-shared posts for the month of June included an impassioned riposte in the microfinance debate, an analysis of changes in Kenya’s world-leading mobile money market, and appreciation for the value of health microinsurance.
- Categories
- Health Care
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