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Watch the Recording of the Live-Streamed Debate: Is There Still Room in Microfinance for Smaller MFIs?
As the 2018 European Microfinance Week came to a close, the conference hosted a live debate on whether there's still room in microfinance for "the little guy" - ie: smaller MFIs. This was an Oxford-style debate, with two speakers arguing that there's no room for smaller players, and two arguing for the continued relevance of these institutions. Hear their arguments and find out who won (yes, there were judges) in the recorded video here.
- Categories
- Finance
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The Digital Transformation: Four Opportunities and Three Threats for Traditional Financial Institutions
Digital finance can reduce the annual cost of serving customers by up to 80 percent – one reason why financial services providers are embracing it. As MicroSave founder Graham Wright sees it, this race toward digitization is creating a watershed moment for financial and social inclusion. The sector’s decisions now will determine whether it will contribute to truly inclusive economies – or create a growing digital divide. Wright explores four ways this transformation could help financial services providers and their customers – along with three major pitfalls they must avoid.
- Categories
- Finance
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Press release: Citi and Banco Guayaquil Sign $20 Million Loan Agreement Benefiting Microfinance in Ecuador
With over 520,000 previously-unbanked clients that now have “Amiga Accounts” and a $70m loan book to finance microenterprises, Banco Guayaquil’s “Banco del Barrio” is one of the pioneering and most comprehensive inclusive finance programs in Latin America, significantly expanding access to financial services in Ecuador by leveraging a network of more than 4,400 non-bank customer touchpoints across the country.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
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Alipay to acquire 45% shares of Pakistan’s Telenor Microfinance Bank
Alipay is a part of the internet giant Alibaba, which is Chinese retail, internet, technology, and AI company. On the other hand, Telenor Microfinance bank is Pakistan’s first scheduled microfinance bank that provides small loans to people who aim to set up their own business to come out of poverty.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- microfinance
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China’s CFPA Microfinance raises $140m in Series C led by The Rise Fund
The latest funding round adds The Rise Fund to CFPA’s list of big-ticket investors, which now include Ant Financial, China Foundation for Poverty Alleviation, IFC, Sequoia Capital China, High Impact Capital Advisors, and Renda Puhui.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Press release: MicroVest Capital Management Announces the Closing of a $20mm Credit Facility with MetLife Investment Management
The credit line enables MicroVest to better manage liquidity of the fund to deploy more capital, more quickly, to the places that need it the most. Per MicroVest’s stated mission, these are often microfinance institutions in emerging and frontier markets that have few other means of accessing capital to promote financial inclusion within their markets.
- Categories
- Finance
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Report: Habitat for Humanity finds Housing Microfinance helps improve living conditions in Kenya
As part of the project, housing microfinance loans were offered not only to informal workers with unsteady incomes, but also to low-income salaried workers making between US$5-10 per day.
- Categories
- Finance, Impact Assessment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- housing, microfinance
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Nigeria’s central bank asks all microfinance institutions to recapitalise by 2020
The Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN) increases the minimum capital base of National Microfinance Banks to N5 billion from N2 million.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- microfinance
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