Global policymakers agreed to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 to mobilize public and private actors toward the elimination of poverty and the achievement of sustainable growth. The challenge and resulting opportunity is immense, with the UN estimating annual investment requirements between $5 trillion and $7 trillion.
MicroVest and the Responsible Financial Institutions in which we invest play an important role in advancing the SDG agenda. Our Social Impact Framework consists of four core pillars (Impact Investing Leadership, Institution Building, Financial Inclusion, and Financial Health) that drive our activities and guide our progress toward the achievement of the SDGs.
As one of the first US-based microfinance investors, Micro-Vest has a 19-year track record as an industry leader that is committed to advancing the responsible investing agenda worldwide. We hold ourselves accountable and are proud participants and signatories of a number of impact investment-focused initiatives that support the growth and professionalization of the industry around the world.
MicroVest’s investments help RFIs invest in and offer innovative, safe financial products and fintech solutions that reduce the costs of loan origination, underwriting, and repayment to further expand the universe of credit-worthy businesses. RFIs enable small businesses to grow, hire more people, and invest in productivity-enhancing assets and technologies for the benefit of themselves, their community, and local economies.
The lack of access to responsible, formalized financial services hampers the ability of MSMEs and households to grow and generate wealth. Women also face greater barriers in accessing finance and formal jobs across emerging markets. Rectifying this inequity is core to our mission. We actively seek to promote financial inclusion and establish gender parity across the RFIs we invest in, to their end borrowers, and our firm itself.
RFIs facilitate entrepreneurship and job creation that unlocks productivity, enabling broader segments of the population to earn a living wage and pull themselves out of poverty. By expanding access to financial services, MicroVest strives to create a world in which families and MSMEs can effectively manage their day-to-day finances, protect themselves from unanticipated risks, and plan and invest for the future.