Thematic bonds—and transparently measuring and reporting their impact—are a powerful tool for mobilizing resources and deepening financial inclusion for microenterprises within the most vulnerable groups of society who have yet to be served by the financial sector.
The ecosystem growing around sustainable funds offers a source of financing for companies in the region, which may help international and local investors to develop their own sustainability agenda with transactions classified as impact investments in their portfolios.
Success stories of sustainable banking services pave the way for possible competitors and new players in the financial sector. There are few bigger success stories than Banco Familiar’s in Paraguay.
Open banking, allowing third-party service providers to access financial data from financial institutions through APIs, is growing rapidly thanks to secular global trends and the region’s thirst for innovation.
The digitization of financial cooperatives, a fundamental component of the financial sector in the region, is accelerating. There are numerous examples of progress, from Ecuador to Jamaica, that provide grounds for optimism.
So-called “patient” capital supports the expansion of mid-market enterprises, driving job creation and supporting modernization. It’s now becoming a fixture of private capital investment, which is soaring in the region as investors seek alternatives to the low returns typical of fixed-income assets.