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The Quiet Revival of Microfinance: Why The Sector is Poised for Greater Growth and Impact in 2025 and Beyond
After starting in the 1970s, the microfinance industry had become a global sensation by the early 2000s, only to see its momentum wane over the subsequent decade due to concerns about high interest rates and poor borrower outcomes. But according to Kris Coppock at Five Talents, a number of data points reveal that microfinance has quietly turned a corner in recent years. He explores how the sector is emerging from the malaise that defined the past decade, driven by a lending approach that treats access to capital as just one part of a wider toolkit for building resilience, opportunity and dignity.
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Verdant Capital Expands Investment in LOLC Africa to $13.5 Million, Boosting MSME Financing Across the Continent
"Recognised as one of the world’s leading microfinance groups, LOLC targets customers at the “bottom of the pyramid” by improving access to financial services and increasing customer deposits across underserved communities."
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Beams Fintech Fund Joins Infinity Fincorp’s USD $40 Million Funding Round
With a pan-India presence spanning 127 branches across eight states, Infinity Fincorp claims to have grown its loan book to INR 1,100+ crores as of January 2025.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Fueling Change: The Multiple Impacts of Increasing Liquefied Petroleum Gas Usage in Rural India
To address the negative impacts of cooking with biomass fuel, the Indian government launched a program in 2018 that offers free access to a clean gas cookstove and a refillable cylinder of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). But as Shobhit Mishra and Vaishaly Shrimall at MSC explain, the program faced logistical challenges that limited uptake among rural households. They explore the barriers that hinder the adoption of gas cooking in rural India, and discuss the impact of an MSC program that leverages self-help groups to boost LPG uptake while creating entrepreneurship opportunities for local women.
- Categories
- Energy, Environment, Finance
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Viewpoint: Indian Microfinance Sector Must Transform Before It’s Too Late
Borrowers are juggling multiple loans—sometimes 6 or more—from MFIs, SHGs, local moneylenders, and even app-based lenders. Field staff are exhausted. Community ties that once held JLGs together are fraying. And loan officers are under pressure, leading to shortcuts, fraud, and rising stress levels.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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The Emergence of Tokenisation in Microfinance: How this Blockchain-Based Technology is Driving Faster Access to Capital for Entrepreneurs In Emerging Markets
Tokenisation — the process of leveraging blockchain to create digital tokens that represent real-world assets — is gaining significant momentum, with some estimating that it could become a $3.8 trillion market by 2030. According to Michele Mattioda at Mikro Kapital, the microfinance industry — and the small and medium enterprises it supports — have a lot to gain from the tokenisation wave. He explores how tokenisation is gradually making inroads into the sector, and discusses Mikro Kapital's experience launching the market’s first tokenised bonds to raise proceeds for microfinance institutions.
- Categories
- Finance, Investing, Technology
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Why Insurance Matters: Announcing the European Microfinance Award 2025 on ‘Building Resilience Through Inclusive Insurance’
Insurance is a hard sell, especially among low-income populations. Yet as Sam Mendelson at e-MFP, and Matthew Genazzini and Asier Achutegui at the Microinsurance Network argue, affordable and tailored insurance products are essential to ensuring economic security and resilience in vulnerable communities. They explore the challenges and opportunities in offering insurance products to low-income customers, and announce the launch of the European Microfinance Award 2025, which will focus on “Building Resilience Through Inclusive Insurance.”
- Categories
- Finance
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Oze Secures New Funding to Expand Lending Management Solution Across Africa
The undisclosed round will support the company’s efforts to scale its Lending Management System (LMS), a solution designed to help financial institutions provide unsecured digital loans to small businesses.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- corporations, digital finance, fintech, lending, microfinance, MSMEs, scale
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