$20 million, multi-year commitment will empower two million
enterprises by 2022
SAN FRANCISCO & DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania--(BUSINESS WIRE)--
Visa (NYSE:V) today marked the launch of the newly-incorporated Visa
Foundation, which has been established as part of Visa’s larger social
impact strategy that will prioritize the growth of micro and small
enterprises around the world, enabling individuals, businesses, and
economies to thrive. To mark its inception, the Visa Foundation is
making its first financial commitment of up to $20 million to Women’s
World Banking.
At the heart of the Visa Foundation is the belief that micro and small
enterprises are the backbone of the global economy. In fact, small and
medium enterprises account for more than 90 percent of enterprises
worldwide, and contribute 50-60 percent of global employment.1
However, these segments struggle to access the financial tools, capital
and training programs required to enable them to fully thrive. The Visa
Foundation’s core mission is to support efforts to rectify this
imbalance.
“As a brand and a business, Visa has always stood for making a positive
and transformational impact on the world,” said Al Kelly, chief
executive officer for Visa and Visa Foundation board member. “The Visa
Foundation has been established to build on a long history of corporate
giving and will accelerate the delivery of our social impact goals. Our
intention is to establish a legacy of meaningful contributions by
helping millions of microenterprises thrive.”
Women’s World Banking Support
The Visa Foundation’s first multi-year initiative will be a five-year,
up to $20 million grant to Women’s World Banking aimed at supporting
millions of women-led small and micro enterprises.
Despite their contribution to both the formal and informal economy
worldwide, women-owned micro and small businesses are unserved or
underserved financially. According to the World Bank there is a
staggering $300 billion annual credit deficit for formal sector
women-owned small and medium sized businesses.2 Financial
products such as savings, credit and insurance can help low-income women
to build their assets, grow their businesses, and ensure economic
resilience in challenging times.
With the Visa Foundation’s support, Women’s World Banking will develop
sustainable solutions for women entrepreneurs to build their enterprises
and establish financial safety nets while also advancing leadership
skills and financial capabilities. Over the next five years, the program
will:
-
Develop, test and scale innovative and sustainable products, that may
include bundled financial services, business continuity insurance and
technology-based solutions that drive positive financial behaviors
-
Expand Women’s World Banking’s global network of partner financial
service providers to effectively serve 50 million more financially
underserved individuals
-
Measure the impact that having access to improved financial services
has on women enterprise owners
-
Drive knowledge sharing, innovation and best practices within the
global community on how to best support small and micro enterprises
The Visa Foundation grant is designed to support Women’s World Banking’s
efforts around the world, with an initial focus in India, Mexico, Egypt
and Nigeria, as key markets to drive growth among low-income,
women-owned small enterprises.
“Women and women-owned businesses continue to be disproportionately
excluded from accessing formal financial services, impacting hundreds of
millions of individuals with a significant effect on families and
communities,” said Stephen Kehoe, Visa’s senior vice president for
global financial inclusion, speaking at Women’s World Banking Making
Finance Work for Women Global Summit in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania.
“By supporting measures to include women, there is a strong multiplier
effect in terms of increased financial health for all. For this reason,
the Visa Foundation chose to focus its first grant on women-owned
enterprises and has selected Women’s World Banking as our first grant
recipient.”
“Women’s World Banking is thrilled to be Visa Foundation’s inaugural
grantee. We share a vision to serve low-income women entrepreneurs whose
contribution to economic growth is far below its potential,” said Mary
Ellen Iskenderian, President and CEO of Women's World Banking. “One
billion women worldwide are unbanked, a significant number of them
business owners. Through this partnership, we will deliver solutions
that drive women’s access and usage of innovative financial services, so
that they create economic opportunity for themselves and their families.”
About the Visa Foundation
The Visa Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Visa, works with
charitable organizations to support underserved people and communities.
As its central focus, the Visa Foundation is committed to helping
low-income, financially underserved micro and small enterprises around
the world to thrive and prosper. The Foundation, registered in the U.S.
as a 501(c)(3) entity, also supports broader community needs as well as
humanitarian responses in times of crisis.
[1] International Finance Corporation, “IFC Issue Brief:
Small and Medium Enterprises.” March 2012
[2] International Financial Corporation, “Closing the Credit
Gap for Formal and Informal Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises.” 2013
View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20171023006560/en/
Source: Visa Inc.