Opportunity International joins the SME Finance Forum, which offers a new pathway to help more families who are living in poverty to build sustainable livelihoods and access quality education for their children.
Washington D.C., May 4th, 2021- Opportunity International joins the SME Finance Forum as the newest member of our global membership network. Our members are SME Financing experts from 80+ countries who share the common goal of expanding access to finance to small businesses worldwide through knowledge exchange and innovation.
“When we started in 2012, we were in an exploratory phase for the first few years. Since 2016, we’ve been implementing our mission to build a global membership to support better SME financing, and since then, we’ve established a network with over 220 active member institutions, which operate in over 190 countries sharing the common purpose of helping under-served enterprises. We are delighted to welcome Opportunity International to further grow our mission.” said Matthew Gamser, CEO, SME Finance Forum.
Opportunity International helps some of the world’s poorest people to build sustainable and resilient livelihoods that can withstand financial shocks and adapt to change. “We aspire to create pathways out of poverty for whole communities through the development of an inclusive financial sector which supports the participation and economic integration of the poorest and most marginalized groups. We build long-term relationships and offer funds, strategic support and collaboration opportunities to financial institutions, community development organizations, innovators and digital leaders. We really look forward to connecting to peer institutions and acquiring new knowledge through our membership of the SME Finance Forum, in order to multiply the potential impact of our SME finance work,” said Deborah Foy, Executive Director, Opportunity International.
About SME Finance Forum
The SME Finance Forum was established by the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) in 2012 as a knowledge center for data, research, and best practice in promoting SME finance. As an implementing partner for the GPFI, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) was tasked with managing the initiative.
To see all SME Finance Forum members, please visit: https://www.smefinanceforum.org/members/member-list
About Opportunity International
Opportunity International is a global non-profit celebrating 50 years of empowering people to work their way out of poverty. Opportunity provides 14.7 million households with innovative financial resources, training, and support to grow their small businesses and send their children to school. In 2019, Opportunity International and its partners released $3.1 billion in capital across 29 countries. The organization also funded 6,400 schools that reached 2 million students. Discover more at opportunity.org or join the conversation on Facebook and Twitter.
Media Contacts
Carina Carrasco
Deborah Foy
