Incofin IM is an involved investor. Our investment managers first visit the institutions in which we intend to invest, and submit them to an in-depth audit. Afterwards, they conduct on-site monitoring of every investment. This is why Incofin IM refers to itself as “committed beyond investment”: we assist our clients before, during and after the investment through coaching, customer care and technical assistance.

Our staff has access to the processes and tools necessary for bringing investment files to a favorable conclusion.

Incofin IM invests with the funds it manages in microfinance institutions through equity, debt and guarantees.

Our objective is to build up a large part of our portfolio with equity investments, because they go hand in hand with a greater involvement of Incofin IM in the institution. For this type of investment, Incofin IM collaborates in strategic decision-making and appoints a member to the Board of Managing Directors.

A special component of our offer with regard to MFIs is Technical Assistance. MFIs can rely on our assistance for improving their financial and social performance. Incofin IM assumes the role of coordinator. We make sure that resources are allocated to the right institution and the right project. The ECHOS© tool helps us to detect any elements which could be improved.

We help MFIs in their search for the right party to tackle these elements. We also follow up on each TA intervention and stay in touch with the MFI throughout the whole process in a close partnership. Afterwards, we evaluate the project together with the MFI. The type of assistance offered depends on the needs of the organization:

• Promotion of innovation in rural microfinance and introduction of best practices to MFIs with regard to product design and outreach methodologies for rural areas;
• Promotion and introduction of best practices to MFIs in terms of social performance management and governance;
• Improvement of the overall development of MFIs in operational, strategic, financial, managerial, organizational areas;
• Support to the creation of greenfield institutions.

As part of our Technical Assistance offer, Incofin IM also coordinates donor aid for MFIs in crisis situations, as we did for Haiti in 2010.

Incofin IM’s investments are exposed to various types of risks. Country risks include, for example, political risks (such as war or civil war) and transfer risks (the impossibility of recovering the invested means due to scarcity of foreign exchange or other governmental measures). To minimize these risks, we have an insurance policy with the National Delcredere service, the Belgian export credit insurer.

There are also market and environmental risks, which are scaled down by a healthy geographical spread of our portfolio.

Finally, we maintain active control over commercial risks and foreign exchange risks by, for instance, strict financial analyses and currency swaps.