Development finance

CDC Group has been formally renamed as British International Investment (BII), a name which the organisation says better reflects the scope of its work. BII will play a key role in the government’s plans to mobilise up to £8 billion a year in investments in international projects

The Beyond the Grid Fund for Africa is expanding its geographical reach in its aim to bring clean, affordable, off-grid energy access to millions of households and support the growth of commercially sustainable businesses across the continent

Launched in 2017, the Village Enterprise Development Impact Bond has helped 95,000 East Africans out of poverty during the pandemic, supporting more than 14,000 first-time entrepreneurs in Kenya and Uganda

SECO’s Liliana de Sá Kirchknopf explains how Switzerland is mobilising more private capital for developing countries aligned with the SDGs, and announces the first call for proposals under a new impact finance initiative

Armelle Renaudin, co-founder of French NGO Entrepreneurs du Monde, explains how their unique approach to social microfinance is helping society’s poorest create successful businesses that last

Manfred Schepers, founder and CEO of ILX Management, is on a mission to bridge the gap between institutional investors’ desire to raise their sustainability profile in emerging markets, and the need for a greater mobilisation of private capital towards SDG-focused projects

Verdant Capital’s Edmund Higenbottam has helped raise more than a quarter of a billion dollars for inclusive financial institutions and fintech companies in Africa since 2017. Impact Investor talks to him about about fintech, impact investing and their latest fund

Dutch pension provider APG is investing $750 million in a new fund managed by ILX Management which will invest jointly with development finance institutions to provide loans for SDG-focused companies and projects in emerging markets

Direct cash transfers organisation 100Weeks offers women living in extreme poverty temporary cash support and financial training to promote sustainable livelihoods

In brief

100Weeks’ programme aims to move women out of poverty by providing direct cash transfers and financial education
Fast-growing tech firm Media.Monks is among the companies supporting the programme
Data on the first group of women […]

The Swiss government has announced a blended finance initiative intended to leverage up to 1bn Swiss francs ($1.09bn) in private sector impact investments in the developing world to meet the Sustainable Development Goals.