The investment particularly aims to bolster the ability of micro and small enterprises to continue operations in an environment made difficult by the COVID-19 crisis.

Ministry of Economy and Finance undersecretary of state Ros Seilava told a news conference that the economic crisis instigated by COVID-19 had been the primary trigger for the emergency SME lending endeavours.

The proceeds of the Social Bond will be used to finance small and medium-sized enterprises within the trade, services and agriculture sectors, in particular the food industry, commercial stores and farms.

Brazil’s central bank has authorized testing of payments via Facebook Inc’s messaging service WhatsApp in the country easing an outright ban on the service imposed last month.

Singapore is planning an online and physical fintech festival amid the spread of the coronavirus across the globe.

This is an opportune time to take a close look at what tools exist in agricultural risk management that can be deployed both to address the current crisis and to build resilience for the future.

CFI will transfer the wealth of implementation resources created by the Smart Campaign to trusted industry partners, enabling CFI to continue playing a catalytic role focused on the risks to low-income customers in the rapidly changing inclusive finance landscape.

The facility has been provided under IFC’s Small Loan Guarantee Program (SLGP), a programmatic approach to risk-sharing that aims to strengthen the capacity of financial institutions to finance SMEs in low-income countries.

Many expats have been sending money as part of their preparation to return home due to joblessness abroad.

Moody’s said the fall in remittances could further widen the current account deficit of the Philippines and other countries.