Peru
In a worldwide first, MIBANCO, the microfinance initiative promoted by the Peruvian government, will be 100 percent privately capitalized and managed. "This is a real milestone," said Michael Chu, ACCION International president and CEO. "President Fujimori and his team deserveenormous credit. Instead of creating one more state bank, they chose to mobilize the power of the private sector to serve the poor." Nearly three-quarters of the $16 million in committed capital stems from programs and investment funds associated with ACCION International, a US based non-profit. Peru's two largest national commercial banks, Banco Wiese and Banco de Credito, will each make a 6.6 percent investment.
Accion Comunitaria del Peru (ACP), a Peruvian non-profit member of the ACCION network operating for 28 years in Lima, brings its 30,000 clients and US$10 million loan portfolio to MIBANCO as majority shareholder. MIBANCO will begin operations in late October, 1997 in ACP’s 15 offices, and will be headed by Manuel J. Montoya, currently ACP's executive director. MIBANCO, which is a for-profit, fully-regulated commercial bank, has the potential to become the largest of its kind in Latin America. The bank expects to reach 100,000 clients by the year 2000.
The ACCION Gateway Fund, which invests in financial instruments issued
by ACCION affiliates in Latin America, will hold seven percent of the stock.
ProFund, a fund which invests in regulated microfinance institutions in
Latin America and the Caribbean, will become a 19.8 percent shareholder.
ProFund's founding investors are four non-governmental organizations (NGOs):
ACCION International (USA), Calmeadow (Canada), Fundes International Ltd.
(Switzerland), and Societe d’ Investissement et de Development International
(SIDI), based in France. ProFund investors include the IFC (World Bank)
and MIF (Inter-American Development Bank), among others.
Mr. Montoya said that MIBANCO will first develop in Lima and Callao where there is the highest concentration of unmet demand for microcredit. The goal by 2000 is to have 18 offices in Lima and an additional eight offices nationwide.
ACCION International is committed to fighting poverty and unemployment
in the Americas by providing credit and other financial services to poor
and low-income, selfemployed business owners. A pioneer in microlending,
ACCION made its first small loans in Recife, Brazil, in 1973. In 1996 the
ACCION network of 24 associates in 13 Latin American countries and six
US. cities disbursed US$ 394 million in loans averaging $575 to 276,000
clients.