IDB – MIF Call for Applications: Inter-American Awards for Financial and Entrepreneurial Innovation 2017

Deadline: 31 August 2017

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), through its Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), is calling for applications to the 2017 Inter-American Awards for Financial and Entrepreneurial Innovation, which are presented annually at FOROMIC, the leading event to support and finance microenterprises in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The MIF annually recognizes innovative institutions and initiatives focused on supporting the financial inclusion and development of MSMEs in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Award Categories

Financial institutions that promote inclusion

• The category of Financial Institutions that promote the inclusion of the Inter-American Awards for Financial and Business Innovation will recognize financial service providers that are successfully using digital technologies to grant access to financial products and services to unaddressed or excluded segments of the population or micro-enterprises.
• The category Financial Institutions that Promote Inclusion will be receiving applications in two subcategories:
  • Regulated Financial Intermediaries.
    • Operate under the prudential supervision of the banking supervisor of the country in which it operates (e.g., savings and credit banks, municipal savings and credit funds, EDPYMEs, Financial Cooperatives, etc.)
  • Other financial service providers
    • Operate a financial company, NGO, company, or another legal status
• Criteria
  • Candidates to the category Institutions that Promote Financial Inclusion must meet the following criteria:
    • Offer a financial service (e.g., credit, payments, savings, or insurance), directly or through its partners, or in alliance with other entities
    • Focused sustained efforts to promote financial inclusion and/or to improve the lives of families in Latin America and the Caribbean, including micro and small businesses, frequently neglected groups, such as emerging entrepreneurs, senior citizens, the rural population, women, and youth, among others
    • Demonstrate a solid financial performance
    • Present an innovation in one or more of the following:
    • The design of products and/or services
    • The use of service channels
    • Support tools
    • Show how the entity is leveraging on digital or mobile technology to promote financial inclusion
    • Have audited financial statements for the past 3 years
    • Innovation must be active and have a sustainable impact model
    • The institution must have been operating for at least three years in a borrowing member country of the IDB

Financial services for small farmers:

• The category “Financial Services for Small Farmers” will recognize innovations in using digital technologies to improve the quality of the products and services for small farmers (agricultural / livestock / aquaculture) in the Latin American and Caribbean region.
• The category Financial Services for Small Farmers will be receiving applications from:
  • Regulated financial institutions (e.g., e.g., savings and credit banks, municipal savings and credit funds, EDPYMEs, Financial Cooperatives, insurance companies, etc.)
  • Cooperatives and farmers associations
  • NGOs
  • Agricultural enterprises and entities (e.g., exporters, processors, distributors, suppliers of inputs, etc.)
  • Fintechs
• Candidates must meet the following requirements:
  • Operate under financial entity, NGO, company, or other legal status
  • Provide a financial service directly or in alliance with a regulated intermediary to small producers
  • Have at least three years of operation
• Criteria
  • Candidates to the category Financial Services for Small must meet the following criteria:
    • Present an innovation using digital technology (directly or in alliance with third parties) that has some tangible benefit to small producers (e.g., improving access to finance, reducing risks and costs, increasing market access, etc.)
    • Innovation must be active and have a sustainable impact model
    • Demonstrate a solid financial performance
    • Must have at least 3 years of audited financial statements
    • Must have operations in one of the IDB’s borrowing member countries

How to Apply

Applicants can fill the application form via given website.

For more information, please visit IDB – MIF Call for Applications.