Asia’s investors express a strong desire for impact, and the region’s small businesses are already delivering it. The primary gap is neither a lack of investor willingness nor a shortfall in enterprise performance. It is the need to invest in an efficient bridge, a scalable mechanism to aggregate, structure, and channel institutional capital directly into last-mile opportunities.
Eastern Bank PLC (EBL) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) to collaborate on developing innovative, inclusive and sustainable finance solutions in Bangladesh.
In our previous piece in March, we argued that Nigeria’s agricultural sector is not underfinanced. It is mis-financed. The capital exists. What doesn’t exist, at least not yet at the scale needed, are financing structures built around how agriculture works, its seasonality, its biology, its risk profile, its deep entanglement with smallholder livelihoods. We made that argument from our initial analysis. Then we went to see it for ourselves.
In awarding this year’s External assessment provider of the year accolade, judges cited Sustainable Fitch’s “excellent framework and process” as key to its success.
Gender-focused finance may become another segment through which Singapore intermediates cross-border capital flows across Asia. PHOTO: BT FILE
The Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) and BRAC EPL Investments today (18 May) signed an agreement to facilitate subscription of the Sajida Orange Zero-Coupon Bond to mobilise capital specifically for women-focused economic empowerment and gender-inclusive development through the bourse’s Electronic Subscription System (ESS).
The electronic subscription of “SAJIDA Orange Zero Coupon Bond,” the first of its kind in Bangladesh, started on Monday to raise Tk 1.58 billion from eligible investors through the Electronic Subscription System (ESS) platform. The subscription will continue until May 23, says a press release.
The expansion of development space following provincial mergers has created a larger and more integrated economic platform. Kathy-Thuy Nguyen, country director of Impact Investment Exchange (IIX) in Vietnam, talked with VIR’s Quynh Chau on the outlook for attracting foreign funding into Vietnam.
Green Finance Week: Asia 2026, Asia’s premier gathering of clean energy finance and investment leaders, concluded on a highly successful note at Four Points by Sheraton Singapore, Riverview. The event brought together an elite mix of policymakers, investors, financial institutions, developers, and sustainability leaders for a day of powerful dialogue, strategic networking, and impactful knowledge exchange.
We are pleased to share the top 150 firms now confirmed to attend the Asia Private Equity Leadership Summit in Hong Kong.