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A Silver Lining During the Pandemic: Three Financial Inclusion Success Stories in the Age of COVID-19
COVID-19 has had a dramatic negative impact on businesses across practically all sectors. When it comes to financial inclusion, the pandemic has sparked concerns about a widening digital divide, rising gender inequality, growing skepticism over informal financial practices, and the risk of overlooking financially vulnerable customers. But as Anshul Saxena at MSC points out, the crisis has also generated some encouraging success stories. He highlights three businesses that have found ways to thrive during the pandemic.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
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Press Release: DFC Announces $1 Billion W-GDP 2X Asia Initiative
U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) Chief Executive Officer Adam Boehler today announced W-GDP 2X Asia, a commitment to mobilize $1 billion of investment to advance women’s economic empowerment in Asia. Through the initiative, DFC aims to mobilize capital and incentivize action from the private sector to achieve scalable and sustainable impact for economically empowering women in the region. The announcement was made during a virtual event featuring keynote remarks by Boehler and a fireside chat with female entrepreneurs.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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2020 MOST INFLUENTIAL ARTICLE CANDIDATE: Unity During the Pandemic: How the Social Enterprise Community is Coming Together to Survive COVID-19
The economic fallout from COVID-19 could increase global poverty by as much as half a billion people. And as Pamela Roussos at Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship points out, the pandemic is also delivering a heavy blow to the social enterprises that fight poverty around the world. She explores some new and innovative ways these enterprises, and the broader sector, are responding to the crisis.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Entrepreneurship
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Press Release: Grameen America Launches Impact Investing Fund to Support Minority Women Small Business Owners Impacted by the Pandemic
Over the course of the fund's five-year life, $17.5 million will be redeployed in nearly $200 million of cumulative loans to women entrepreneurs.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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$500 Million Asian Development Bank Loan to Expand Financial Inclusion in Indonesia
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a $500 million policy-based loan to support the Government of Indonesia's efforts to expand financial access among micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises and marginalized groups such as women and youth.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
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Press Release: IIX Accelerates Gender Bond Issuances With Pricing of Women’s Livelihood Bond 3
Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) has successfully priced the US$27.7 million Women’s Livelihood BondTM 3 (WLB3), the third bond in the award-winning Women’s Livelihood BondTM Series (WLB Series). Advancing a total of 13 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the WLB3 complies with the International Capital Markets Association (ICMA) Social Bond Principles and will support 180,000 underserved women and women entrepreneurs in the Asia Pacific region to respond, to recover from, and to build resilience in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The WLB3 is also the maiden investment of IIX’s Women’s Catalyst Fund, a next generation gender lens vehicle designed to accelerate innovative financial instruments for women.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Investing
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Rwandan Female Entrepreneur on Course to Raise $490,000 in Funding
With 70,000 serviced daily via its safe water mini-grids, WARwanda is setting high ambitions to service over 30 million people in the next 10 years and create over 13,000 jobs, greatly multiplying its current reach.
- Categories
- Entrepreneurship, Environment
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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COVID-19 Impact on Women-Led Micro Business Widens Socio-Economic Gap in India: Survey
The adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on women-led micro businesses in India has exacerbated the vast socio-economic gap, finds a survey.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Investing
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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