Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) announces investment in Women’s World Banking Capital Partners II to support closing the gender gap in financial inclusion

The Sasakawa Peace Foundation (Minato-ku, Tokyo, President: Atsushi Sunami) signed an agreement committing to invest USD 3 million in Women’s World Banking Capital Partners (WWBCP) II. WWBCP II aims to improve women’s financial inclusion through a blended approach, by leveraging concessional equity to attract commercial investors to invest in women-focused financial services providers in emerging markets, including low-income countries and fragile states. The fund will leverage Women's World Banking's considerable experience developing best practices and delivering technical assistance, thereby improving the performance of portfolio Micro Finance Institutions (MFIs) and facilitating the scale of their impactful operations.

The Sasakawa Peace Foundation (SPF) continues to support projects that empower women to achieve gender equality in society, in accordance with SPF’s five priority goals. This investment in WWBCPII is part of the foundation’s impact investment portfolio through the Asia Women Impact Fund (AWIF).

“There are still approximately 1.7 billion people in the world who are 'unbanked,' meaning they do not have access to bank accounts or financial services. Women, in particular, have difficulty in accessing financial services because they do not have bank accounts or assets that can serve as collateral, making it difficult for them to develop their own livelihoods and enterprises. We at the Sasakawa Peace Foundation believe that it is imperative that women are able to access financial institutions and appropriate financial services. WWBCPII aims to promote efforts to improve women's access to finance, thereby reducing poverty and empowering women economically in the region. This is precisely the goal of SPF's Asia Women's Impact Fund (AWIF). We look forward to WWBCPII being a strong partner in creating a positive social impact as well as effectively managing its assets. The foundation will continue to promote gender lens investing and women's economic empowerment through AWIF.”

“We are so grateful that the Sasakawa Peace Foundation is partnering with us to help close the gender gap in financial inclusion and create employment and leadership opportunities for women in our portfolio companies. We admire SPF's leadership in promoting gender equality and empowerment and look forward to engaging together to further our common goals.”