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Microfinance

Three billion people in the developing world lack access to financial services. At Standard Chartered, when we talk about increasing access to financial services we are talking about reaching the "unbanked". Our Microfinance programme is a commercially viable initiative to help people gain access to financial services and to stimulate grassroot enterprise. Across our network we partner with Microfinance Institutions providing credit facilities, banking services and technical assistance, to support them in widening their outreach.

At the Clinton Global Initiative in September 2006, the the Bank committed to the establish of a $500 million microfinance facility to be utilised over a period of five years across Asia and Africa. The facility is estimated to benefit 4 million people who are currently excluded from participation in the financial sector.

We focus on several key areas of microfinance. These include:

• Channeling funds to the microfinance sector: we provide funding and banking products and services to our partner MFIs.
• Alliances: we partner with Development Organisations to develop innovative ways to support the sector by better managing the risks.
• Technical Assistance: We also partner with Microfinance experts to provide Technical Assistance and training to the microfinance sector. We plan to formalise a Technical Assistance Strategy in 2008, working with experts to provide training to MFIs in areas where the Bank has natural skill sets such as credit, operations and corporate governance.

• Read more about our Microfinance initiatives (PDF, 1.27MB)