May 14, 2020. Of the 1.7 billion adults worldwide who are unbanked, women are overrepresented: about 980 million do not have an account, 56% of the world’s unbanked (World Bank). That is the target population of the microfinance sector, which provides a set of financial products and services to people excluded from the banking system.
To support the development of microfinance and gender finance, the Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company Limited, Crédit Agricole CIB, Tokyo Branch, and the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation have set up an innovative scheme. The Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company has invested 2 billion Yen in a 10-year Microfinance and Gender Loan scheme by Crédit Agricole CIB, which will benefit the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation to support microfinance institutions focusing in women and social enterprises in rural economies of developing countries.
This is the first ever Microfinance and Gender Loan scheme arranged by the Crédit Agricole Group. “This one of a kind transaction is a perfect illustration of the ambitions of the Group’s Project 2022. It reaffirms our customer-focused model and our efforts to provide innovative solutions to our Asian clients, while strengthening our commitment to responsible investment”, says Michel Roy, Senior Regional Officer for Asia-Pacific of Crédit Agricole CIB.
With this partnership, Dai-ichi Life Insurance Company reinforces its commitment to high social impact investments. “We are honored to financially support the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation and its action in favour of women financial inclusion and entrepreneurship in developing countries. As a responsible institutional investor, Dai-ichi Life will continue an active engagement in ESG investment and contribute to forming sustainable social framework around the world”, affirms Tetsuya Kikuta, Director, Managing Executive Officer of the company.
For the Foundation, it is a great opportunity to strengthen its action in developing countries. “Alongside Crédit Agricole CIB and Dai-ichi Life, we will step up our support for women empowerment through microfinance and female entrepreneurship. It is a real pride for the Foundation to be part of this innovative and unique partnership in the history of the Crédit Agricole Group”, says Eric Campos, CEO of the Grameen Crédit Agricole Foundation.