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Investing to overcome fragility

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Financing economic inclusion

While poverty has decreased globally, fragile communities continue to lag behind in terms of development. For these communities to flourish, economic development is essential. To support this, financial systems must be strengthened, investments in businesses provided and jobs need to be created. However, the most fragile developing countries lack access to inclusive financial services.

Cordaid Investment Management B.V. (CIMBV) fills this gap by investing in people and businesses that have limited or no financial alternatives. We offer access to finance using a mix of financial instruments and focus on supporting women and young people.

What we do

CIMBV, the asset management branch of Cordaid Foundation, demonstrates that it is possible to create scalable and sustainable social impact in fragile contexts. We invest in Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) that offer inclusive finance to micro entrepreneurs. We also invest in Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) that have limited or no financial alternatives. CIMBV uses a mix of instruments: patient capital (equity and subordinated debt) and senior debt including loans with longer maturities. We harness social returns throughout our investment processes, and we pride ourselves of being forward thinking when it comes to measuring social impact and designing social performance indicators and assessment tools.

CIMBV supports the rural financial market in Myanmar (© Cordaid/Karen Mol)

CIMBV manages thematic investment funds that foster Cordaid’s multidisciplinary approach to development. The Rural and Agriculture Fund (RURAF) provides agricultural subsectors with access to finance to boost local rural economies. RURAF focuses on MFIs that serve farmers and rural microentrepreneurs. The Stability Impact Fund (SIF) contributes to economic development in fragile communities. SIF is an impact fund serving all segments of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. The Stability Impact Fund Africa (SIFA) will be a carve-out of SIF specifically focusing on Africa. It provides SMEs and MFIs with access to inclusive finance.

Female microentrepreneur who received funding from our partner MFI Hekima in the Democratic Republic of Congo (© Hekima)

CIMBV is a 100% subsidiary of Cordaid Foundation, which is a frontrunner in opening markets to impact investment since 1997. We work with a professional investment team of 23 persons, with backgrounds in banking and development aid. CIMBV is currently active in 24 countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Read more about our footprint.

CIMBV has the strong belief that we can increase our social impact by scaling up. This is the reason why we formulated our ambition statement that will guide our decisions in the following years. Read more about Investing To Overcome Fragility.

68,000 micro-entrepreneurs reached through investments in 2019
76 partners financed in 2019
71 million € invested in MFIs and SMEs in 2019

Investments Services

Investment management

CIMBV manages impact investment funds. We provide patient capital to MFIs and SMEs. We focus on those opportunities that offer high social impact to stimulate the creation of jobs, to empower women and to catalyse rural businesses. CIMBV strives to invest in markets in fragile communities while maintaining an integrated Environmental, Social and Governance approach. Our duty towards our investors is to offer a balance between social and financial return, and to open markets in which investors would not otherwise be able to invest in.