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Social Distancing Is Not an Option for India’s Poor
Modi has announced a lockdown, but the strategies adopted in other countries simply aren’t possible for millions of Indians.
- Categories
- Health Care
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- public health
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With Discretionary Spends in a Freeze, Indian Retailers Catch a Cold
As number of Covid-19 cases mount, consumers in India are cutting down on discretionary spending and stocking up on basic items such as food and groceries.
- Categories
- Coronavirus
- Region
- South Asia
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Matt Damon’s Impact Investing Fund Backs CreditAccess Grameen
Mumbai-listed CreditAccess provides group lending products as well as retail finance products. It also offers access to non-financial services such as customer awareness and education programmes and sanitation efforts.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- South Asia
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Off-Grid Energy Investment at $2.1 Billion in the Last Decade: Wood Mackenzie
Wood Mackenzie estimates 420 million people now use standalone off-grid solar and another 47 million people rely on mini-grids for access to electricity. While investments in energy access have rapidly accelerated since 2016, total volumes still fall short of the total estimated financing needed to reach universal electricity access globally by 2030.
- Categories
- Energy
- Region
- South Asia
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A New Mobile-Money Firm in Bangladesh Is Benefiting From Special Treatment
Since mobile money took off in Bangladesh nearly a decade ago, bKash has dominated the industry.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- fintech
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Visa Champions a New Decade for Women’s Empowerment
Kicking off Women’s History Month, Visa today announced two new partnerships bolstering the company’s commitment to women’s economic empowerment. Hand In Hand International and IFundWomen will join Visa to help provide both educational resources and funding for women entrepreneurs around the globe to help them build and grow their businesses. The global rate of female entrepreneurship has been increasing more quickly than that of male entrepreneurs, with more than 250 million women around the world engaged in entrepreneurship.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- philanthropy
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Quona Capital Closes Second Fund with $203 Million Aimed at Financial Inclusion in Emerging Markets
Quona Capital, a venture firm focused on financial inclusion in emerging markets, today announced the final close of the Accion Quona Inclusion Fund. The Fund closed with $203 million in commitments from an array of leading investors including global asset managers and insurance companies, investment and commercial banks, as well as university endowments, foundations, family offices, and development finance institutions, significantly exceeding its $150 million target. Quona leverages a strategic relationship with Accion, a nonprofit financial inclusion pioneer, which is the Fund’s sponsor, general partner, and anchor investor.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- impact investing
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Microsoft, Accenture join to provide tech support to social enterprise startups
Intending to help deepen the reach of entrepreneurs and start-ups that are focused on social impact and sustainability, the joint initiative by Microsoft and Accenture aims to provide hands-on support and technologies to social enterprises, helping them build scalable solutions and business models that can lead to more tangible and lasting benefits.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- startups
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