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Mar 22, 2019

Do agent networks help to boost savings? – Effects on institutional deposit mobilization and customer saving behavior

This report examines if agent networks do help to mobilize savings - one of the primary objectives of microfinance institutions that introduce agent banking channels. Mechanisms of effects are presented across multiple dimensions. Results suggest that agents help to boost savings but they cannot be expected to do so in every context. Culture, products, incentives, pricing and customer behavior are factors that have to be taken into account. Key recommendations are discussed how DFS providers can nevertheless realize agent networks’ potential for savings mobilization.

English | 28 pages | 2019 IFC

Mar 21, 2019

Bank Andara Case Study

Bank Andara is the first wholesale commercial bank focused exclusively on providing a wide range of wholesale banking services to microfinance institutions in Indonesia. Through this, effort, Bank Andara aims to deepen and expand financial services to low-income market segments through sustainable operations.

English | 2 pages | 2019 IFC

Mar 20, 2019

Fact Sheet: Disclosure and Transparency Toolkit, March 2019

The toolkit supports the broader World Bank Group’s effort to enhance disclosure and transparency standards in the countries and companies it works with, either as an investor or an adviser, through better annual reporting. It provides guidance on preparing comprehensive and integrated annual reports that include critical environmental, social, and governance information to companies, stock exchanges, market regulators and investors alike.

Mar 19, 2019

Credit to Merchants: Tienda Pago's Digital Solution for Fast-Moving Consumer Goods

This case study aims to extrapolate some preliminary lessons from Tienda Pago’s model, including its challenges and potential for scale. The study is informed by distributor and customer interviews and qualitative research, which sought to map characteristics of merchant clients and analyze both drivers and barriers to product usage and uptake.

English | 26 pages | 2019 IFC

Mar 18, 2019

Reinventing Business Through Disruptive Technologies

Technology disrupts and transforms. And disruptive technologies are critical to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals, many of which can be advanced and accelerated through technological innovations. For a comprehensive examination of the ways these innovations alter private sector business models in emerging markets, IFC conducted a tour of the technology horizon in eight selected sectors—power, transport, water and sanitation, digital infrastructure, manufacturing, agribusiness, education, and financial services—and six selected themes, from gender and climate-smart cities to e-logistics and personal identification, among others. This report examines each of these sectors and themes in terms of what true disruption looks like, which technologies are most likely to have a dramatic impact, and the specific opportunities they offer.

English | 112 pages | IFC 2019

Mar 15, 2019

CASE STUDY: BioE

English | 19 pages | March 2019 | IFC

Mar 12, 2019

Governance and Performance in Emerging Markets

Empirical study on the link between performance and corporate governance of IFC investment clients

Mar 12, 2019

Natural Gas and the Clean Energy Transition

In the clean energy transition, the value of natural gas infrastructure is very important for operating the energy system. Gas-fired power plants contribute to optimized energy systems when they are designed to operate flexibly, responding to demand patterns and the variable supply of renewable energy. Smart electricity grids, renewable energy, battery storage technology, and gas-fired power plants in combination will generally be the lowest cost, low-carbon solution to the growing energy requirements of emerging markets. Private investors and financiers are responding to these opportunities, but the full potential will only be reached with improvements in policy, regulation, and procurement in destination markets.

English | 8 pages - March - Note 65 | IFC 2019

Mar 12, 2019

Newsletter: Corporate Governance Updates - October-December 2018

Quarterly newsletter that highlights IFC's corporate governance work around the world, including news and events, latest indicators, media coverage, reports and publications.

Mar 11, 2019

Women on Boards of Companies Listed on the Dhaka Stock Exchange

A directory of qualified women directors of CSE listed companies that inspire other women to advance and grow, and showcases the important role women on boards play in Bangladesh in the different industry sectors.

Mar 11, 2019

Respectful Workplaces: Exploring the Costs of Bullying and Sexual Harassment to Businesses in Myanmar

The report offers business leaders an opportunity to understand the experiences of employees relating to bullying and sexual harassment in Myanmar workplaces. It provides a set of practical recommendations, targeting business leaders, human resource managers, employees and other interested parties to create workplaces that are safe and free from bullying and sexual harassment.

Mar 8, 2019

Report: Moving Toward Gender Balance in Private Equity and Venture Capital

The study explores the link between financial returns and gender diversity; the lack of women in the industry; and steps needed to achieve gender balance. One of the key findings of the report is that private equity and venture capital funds with gender-balanced senior investment teams generated 10 percent to 20 percent higher returns compared with funds that have a majority of male or female leaders.

English | 2019 IFC

Mar 7, 2019

Report: Moving Toward Gender Balance in Private Equity and Venture Capital

The study explores the link between financial returns and gender diversity; the lack of women in the industry; and steps needed to achieve gender balance. One of the key findings of the report is that private equity and venture capital funds with gender-balanced senior investment teams generated 10 percent to 20 percent higher returns compared with funds that have a majority of male or female leaders.

English | 137 pages | 2019 IFC

Mar 6, 2019

Women on Boards of Companies Listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange, 2nd edition

An updated directory of qualified women directors of CSE listed companies that inspire other women to advance and grow, and showcases the important role women on boards play in Sri Lanka in the different industry sectors.

Mar 6, 2019

Women on Boards - Research Study in Lebanon

The study examines the current status of gender diversity, the barriers to female participation on boards and obstacles preventing optimal performance once in these positions in the corporate world. It highlights opportunities to increase the number of women in Lebanese boardrooms and proposes recommendations on how to achieve greater gender equality in the boardroom.

Mar 5, 2019

The Case for Gender Diversity Among Sri Lanka’s Business Leadership

The publication makes the case for greater gender diversity on Sri Lanka’s corporate boards and in senior management by identifying a correlation between financial performance and gender diversity in Sri Lanka’s 30 largest listed companies. It also offers practical and relevant strategies to narrow the gender gap in the Sri Lankan context.

Mar 4, 2019

Women on Boards - Research Study in Egypt

A synopsis of research results on the relationship between gender diversity on corporate boards and a company’s financial performance in Egypt. The study examines the barriers to female participation on boards, highlights opportunities to increase the number of women in boardrooms and proposes recommendations on how to achieve greater gender equality in the boardroom, build a pipeline of female business leaders, and promote gender-equality practices in the Egyptian labor market.

Mar 1, 2019

Understanding DFIs’ Private Sector Engagement in African Fragile and Conflict-Affected Situations

Review of Development Finnace Institutions' Activities in Cote d'Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia and Sudan

Feb 26, 2019

Guide de Bonnes Pratiques de traçabilitè

IFC a développé un guide pour améliorer l'accès au marché des PME du secteur de la transformation des noix de cajou en Côte d’Ivoire.

Feb 22, 2019

Institutional Investing: A New Investor Forum and Growing Interest in Sustainable Emerging Markets Investments

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals is estimated to require additional financing on the order of $2.6 trillion in emerging markets and low-income countries in 2030. A substantial increase in private investment is required to close this financing gap. The Investor Forum held at the 2018 G20 Buenos Aires Summit, which included some of the world’s largest investors, focussed on solutions to these challenges. The resulting Buenos Aires Call to Action calls for a more regular dialogue with policy makers at the highest level and underlines the need to break away from the short-termism that plagues current investment strategies.

English | 8 Pages - February - Note 64 | IFC 2019

Feb 20, 2019

The Power Of Partnerships In Fragile And Conflict Affected Areas

To nurture opportunities in fragile areas, and deliver maximum impact, strong partnerships must be the way forward.

Feb 18, 2019

Digitizing Merchant Payments in Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s largest mobile financial services provider,bKash, added mobile merchant payments to its service offerings in 2014. Three years later, more than 50,000 establishments throughout the country were registered with bKash’s platform. While the Bangladeshi economy is still predominantly cashbased, bKash is helping to revamp the way that transactions are made.

English | 28pages | 2019 IFC

Feb 18, 2019

Диагностика частного сектора. Создание рынков в Узбекистане

Feb 18, 2019

Country Private Sector Diagnostic. Creating Markets in Uzbekistan

Feb 15, 2019

CASE STUDY: PROCAPS

PROCAPS: Encapsulating High Quality, Safety and Trust in Softgel Medications that Reach People in Over 50 Countries

English | 21 pages | February 2019 | IFC