Investees

Dvara KGFS has been in existence since June 2008 for fulfilling the mission of maximizing the financial well-being of every individual and every enterprise by providing complete access to financial services in remote rural India. Dvara KGFS currently operates in the Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Odisha, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Karnataka serving individual customers and enterprises in remote rural areas. Dvara KGFS operates through a customer-centric technology-enabled model, whereby household information is collected to generate a financial well-being report, which acts as a tool to determine the suitability of a product opted by a customer. Dvara's headquarters and branches positioned in different locations cater to a clearly defined geographical area spread over a contiguous location with a population of above 5 million. On the distribution front, Dvara also partners with banks and other financial institutions under the direct origination model, serving as a business correspondent (BC).

Juhudi Kilimo was set up as a social enterprise project under K-Rep, now Sidian Bank, a commercial bank in Kenya. In 2010, it spun off from K-Rep and became a for-profit credit-only MFI currently owned by four social impact investors; Soros, Acumen, Grameen and INCOFIN. The Company is present across Kenya and offers loans for crop farming, farm animals, farm equipment, clean energy and micro housing. The Company’s mission is to "improve the livelihoods of rural smallholder farmers and micro entrepreneurs by providing wealth creating financial solutions".

Light Microfinance is a Non-Banking Finance Company registered with the Reserve Bank of India. Headquartered in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, Light Microfinance provides financial services with gender and poverty-focused programs, targeting rural and peri-urban areas, with a specific focus on low income women. The company operates in North West of India and is one of the fastest growing microfinance companies in India today.

Proximity Finance was launched in 2010 as the microfinance arm of Proximity Designs, a US-based NGO. Proximity Designs is one of the largest agricultural services platforms in Myanmar and provides farm technology, agronomy advice and financial services to small farms across the country. In 2018 Proximity Finance was spun-off from the NGO and established as a company licensed as a non-deposit-taking MFI with permission to operate in more than 70 townships. Proximity Finance is currently serving over 130000 smallholder farmers across 2000 villages in 9 of Myanmar’s 14 regions. The social mission is to help improve the livelihoods of rural Myanmar people through the provision of innovative financial services tailored to their needs. Sustainability is a guiding principle, but Proximity is mindful of the trade-off between impact and profitability and to never do harm to the clients. The business model is unique and customer centric. Products are tailored to farmers’ needs and repayments are made when farmers receive income from their harvest.

Sathapana is one of the largest commercial banks by branches in Cambodia. The Company was originally established as an NGO in 1995. In 2009, the Company received a deposit-taking license from the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) and in 2012, was acquired by MARUHAN Japan Bank Plc. In 2016, Sathapana and MARUHAN merged into Sathapana Bank. The Company has a presence in all 25 counties of Cambodia, offering a board range of personal and business loans, deposits products, FX accounts and remittances.

Incorporated in April 2018, Sindhuja is an Indian NBFC-MFI with the mission “to make financial services easily available to the financially excluded and MSME entrepreneurs through efficient, customer friendly and technology driven solutions”. The Company was founded by two highly experienced gentlemen with long careers in the Indian microfinance industry. The business model is to incorporate digital solutions into traditional microfinance, i.e. Joint Liability Group (JLG) loans offered to women microentrepreneurs, including cashless disbursement, possibility for digital repayment, and tablet-based loan applications. Sindhuja targets underpenetrated rural areas and currently operates in in the states of Bihar, Jharkhand, UP, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. Sindhuja operates a network of 68 branches with presence in 5 states and an outstanding loan portfolio of USD 30 million.

Tugende is tackling the credit gap for small businesses in Africa by enabling informal entrepreneurs to: own income‑generating assets, build a verifiable digital credit profile, and earn future growth opportunities through the Tugende digital platform. From financing to value-added services to new opportunities, Tugende are building a long-term ecosystem for MSMEs to grow and thrive.

Baobab SAS, established in 2005, is a financial institution operating in Africa as well as in China. In 2017 the group was rebranded Baobab changing from formerly Microcred. The bank provides basic financial services tailored to the needs of the underbanked micro and SME businesses, operating in Senegal, Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Mali, Tunisia, Burkina Faso, Tunisia, DRC and China. Baobab has a wide range of digital and mobile solutions that enable clients to simply, quickly and safely manage their finances, and is today serving more than 1 million clients.

PT Bina Artha Ventura (Bina Artha) is engaged in the microfinance sector in Indonesia since December 2011. Bina Artha offers working capital through a modified version of the traditional microfinance Grameen group methodology exclusively to women who do not have or have only partial access to the formal financial sector. In addition, Bina Artha provides access to business loans for small enterprises. Around ~400.000 customers are served through an extensive network of ~350 branches in Java and Sulawesi islands.

Kenya Women Microfinance Bank (KWFT) has been in operation since incorporation in 1982 and has since grown to be the biggest microfinance institution in Kenya. The full-fledged microfinance bank has a country wide presence with ~250 offices spread across practically every county in Kenya. KWFT’s current mandate is to support Kenyan families financially, especially through making women entrepreneurs able to realize their economic potential. Through micro products, solar energy, education, sanitation among other clients can improve their daily life situation. Since inception, the company has reached out to over 900, 000 customers throughout Kenya.

LOLC (Cambodia) Plc is a deposit-taking microfinance institution operating in Cambodia. The Company was founded in 1994 and in 1999 became the first regulated microfinance institution in the country. The Company received its deposit-taking license in October 2015. The majority of the Company’s client base is female clients in rural areas, a large share of whom are involved in agriculture.

PRASAC Microfinance Institution (PRASAC) started operating in 1995 as an EU-funded project to facilitate rural development programs in six provinces in Cambodia. In 2007, PRASAC completed its transformation to a licensed MFI. The Company utilizes both the group lending methodology (up to 10% of the portfolio) and the individual lending methodology (~90%). In addition, PRASAC also provides some loans to SMEs. PRASAC operates in all 24 provinces in the country through its network of branches, sub-branches and service posts (smaller localized branches).

North East Small Finance Bank (NESFB) is a small finance bank focusing exclusively on northeast India. The Company was set up in 2010 as RGVN (North East) Microfinance limited but has its roots as the Credit & Savings Program of the RGVN Society, which was founded as an NGO in 1990. In 2015, the Company was awarded an in-principle approval by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for setting up a Small Finance Bank (SFB) and in 2017, the Company commenced operations as an SFB.

NESFB has a network of 214 branches in the North Eastern States with a customer base of 500,000+ each for deposits and loans. They have a loan portfolio of USD 215 million and a deposit base of USD 150 million.

Satin Creditcare Network Ltd is one of the largest microfinance institutions in India, and is listed on the Mumbai Stock exchange. Satin operates 1,300+ branches spread across 23 states in India. They empower 3.1+ million women borrowers by providing finance to earn their livelihood and support household needs. They primarily offer microfinance loans under the Joint Liability Group lending model. In addition, they have also offer MSME and housing finance. Satin has a strong focus on digitization of its operations and has one of the best technology platforms deployed amongst its peers. NMI has been a partner with Satin since 2014.

Sub-K IMPACT Solutions (formerly known as BASIX Sub-K iTransactions) bridges the financial divide between banks and underserved population by effectively leveraging technology and local entrepreneurship. Sub-K creates a high-tech high-touch operating infrastructure at the last mile connectivity to deliver meaningful financial services through a capital light model and a wide distribution network. Sub-K serves millions of customers through its verticals **Agent Network Management** (local entrepreneurs/Business Correspondent Agents/“human ATMs” providing financial services to end customers) and **Credit Facilitation** (facilitating affordable, accessible, and door-step microfinance loans to women across the country).

Svasti is a Mumbai-based Non-banking Financial company-Micro finance Institution, focusing on financial wellbeing of enterprising women from economically challenged sections of the society. They work towards fulfilling the right to finance and transforming the lives of women by providing microfinance loans, MSME loans, housing and consumer finance loans to its customers, designed as per their requirements – primarily for starting or enhancing businesses or purchasing goods and services for themselves and their families. Svasti today services around 187,500 customers across 63 branches spread over 4 states, aggregating a loan portfolio of around USD 55 million. They aim to transform the lives of 10 million women by 2030. Svasti’s model is rooted in insights, human touch and data analytics; driven by technology and smart processes. Svasti is run by a professional management team and is backed by some reputed investors such as Michael & Susan Dell Foundation, Bamboo Inclusion Finance Fund, amongst others. NMI has been a partner with Svasti since 2018.

Baobab Senegal is a microfinance institution operating in Senegal. Baobab was established in 2007 and offers financial services to a large number of clients who have been excluded from the formal financial sector. Through traditional borrowing and savings models, Baobab Senegal has a twofold goal: To improve the standard of living of its clients and their households in addition to being a catalyst for economic development in Senegal. The company offers microfinance loan products, SME loans, deposit- and savings products, as well as insurance and payment services.

FEFISOL is a Microfinance Investment Vehicle that was founded by Solidarite International pour le Developpement et l'Investissement (SIDI), Etimos and Alterfin, each of which have an extensive investment experience. The Company is managed by SIDI as the Investment Advisor, and SIDI will engage Etimos and Alterfin on a sub-contracting basis to provide additional investment services to FEFISOL.

Goodwell West Africa is a business development company for the microfinance sector that invests in entrepreneurial microfinance organizations in Nigeria and Ghana on a socially and commercially sustainable basis. The Company provides commercial long-term equity capital and active support to emerging and established microfinance institutions. The Company seeks to encourage and accelerate growth and build value while maintaining social focus.

Progression Eastern African Microfinance Equity Fund (Progression) is a Microfinance Investment Vehicle founded by individuals with extensive experience in the microfinance sector in Eastern Africa. The Company aims at achieving capital appreciation and a positive social return primarily by providing Equity capital to Microfinance Institutions and Microfinance Enablers in Eastern Africa.

Incorporated in 2009, Utkarsh is one of the leading financial institutions in India. While they started their business with microfinance operations in rural areas and developed deep expertise and gained significant growth in the domain, they have now transformed into a “Small Finance Bank”, with a network of over 400 branches in 11 states of the country. Utkarsh provides credit to over 2 million borrowers, still primarily women, and has an outstanding loan portfolio of USD 650 million. In addition to microfinance, Utkarsh also provides general banking services and products including deposits, housing loans, MSME loans, utility bill payments, money transfer services, etc. It has a deposit base of USD 500 million. 528 banking outlets, 18 states and union territories, Outstanding loan portfolio to USD 900 million and deposit to USD 820 million. NMI has been a partner to Utkarsh since 2011.

Financial Inclusion Fund (IFIF) is a microfinance equity fund, investing in high-growth, small to medium microfinance institutions in the Indian market. IFIF also invests in "microfinance enablers" that expand the provision of financial services to the poor. IFIF's triple bottom line objectives are financial inclusion, capital appreciation, and social performance initiatives. The Fund participates actively in the governance and management of its portfolio companies.

RIF II invests exclusively in Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) with a high rural presence and has a balanced global portfolio focused on Africa, Asia, and Latin America. RIF II is managed by Incofin Investment Management, which has its head office in Antwerp, and offices in Cambodia, Colombia, India and Kenya.

ShoreCap II is a microfinance investment fund providing equity for regulated and established microfinance institutions and small business banks in Africa and Asia. Technical assistance is available for ShoreCap II portfolio companies through a Technical Assistance Facility managed by Capital Plus Exchange. ShoreCap II is managed by Equator Capital Partners, LLC.

Women’s World Banking Capital Partners, LP is a microfinance investment vehicle established by Women’s World Banking. The fund predominantly makes equity investments into microfinance institutions who are members of the Women’s World Banking network in developing countries around the world.