The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a financing agreement with the CoopMed Fund for the subscription of USD denominated senior bond tranches up to the equivalent of EUR 3 million. CoopMed is a debt fund supporting financial inclusion in the Mediterranean region. The EIB financing would support up to 350,000 final beneficiaries, of which 43% are women.
The new loan was signed under the Southern Neighbourhood MicrofinanceRisk Capital Facility, a EUR 71.3 million facility which supports investments in microfinance markets in Southern Neighborhood countries. The facility blends EIB’s own resources with the European Commission resources under the Neighborhood Investment Facility.
This is the second EIB loan to CoopMed. The EIB already provided financing through the subscription of the mezzanine bond tranches of EUR 2 million to CoopMed. The loan has been contributing to support poverty reduction through supporting tier 2 and 3 microfinance institutions in the Mediterranean region to further promote financial inclusion.
Since 2016, CoopMed supports responsible financial institutions, namely Micro Financial Institutions (MFIs), local banks, mutual companies and local intermediaries, to foster job creation and economic opportunities in order to fight exclusion and strengthen the civil society in MENA countries. CoopMed is managed by Inpulse, a social impact investment manager with particular expertise in originating and managing social investments and financing of microfinance institutions and cooperatives.
Commenting on the new loan, EIB’s Vice-President, Dario Scannapieco said: “The new EUR 3 million senior bond participation for CoopMed, a partner institution to the EIB, confirms the EIB’s commitment to improve financial inclusion and entrepreneurship in Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Palestine and the wider Mediterranean Region. Greater access to finance for micro-entrepreneurs will boost business growth, help sustain employment and contribute to further expansion of the private sector in poorer communities, including rural areas.”
Bruno Dunkel, the Managing Director of CoopMed said “CoopMed is a catalyst for social investment and higher outreach: backed by EIB’s renewed trust, we will be able to leverage on new funding to boost all forms of social economy initiatives on the field: cooperatives, social and micro-enterprises but also better serve deprived populations in the MENA region”.
Background information
CoopMed supports the creation of employment and sustainable economic activities, and promotes green and innovative initiatives enhancing social entrepreneurship in the Mediterranean region. CoopMed provides loans to MFIs, local banks and mutual companies and applies a strong social performance policy with the support of a dedicated technical assistance facility. As of today, CoopMed has an initial investment capacity of EUR 10.5 M and will expand to EUR 20 M by end 2018. At present CoopMed is funded by EIB, Crédit Coopératif, some members of the Federation of Ethical and Alternative Banks, French mutual companies and other institutions specialized in impact investing. The new roundtable will also involve AFD Group, the French DFI.
Inpulse is a Brussels-based investment manager with special know-how on social investments and microfinance. Inpulse has a core expertise in cooperative equity financing, strong skills in managing alternative investment funds providing long-term financing to socially driven financial intermediaries. Through a team based in three countries (Belgium, Poland and France), Inpulse currently advise three active MIVs (CoopEst, CoopMed and Helenos) for a total aggregate investment capacity of EUR 70 M. www.inpulse.coop
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