About Commonwealth MF

Commonwealth Micro Finance (CMF) has been established by the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) to provide a range of financial services including international remittances, micro-savings, micro-loans and other banking services for individuals and small businesses in 52 Commonwealth countries.

CBC provides leadership in increasing international trade and investment flows, creating new business opportunities, promoting good governance and corporate social responsibility, reducing the digital divide and integrating developing countries, in the Commonwealth, into the global market.

In fulfilling its mission, CBC strives to provide a bridge between the private sector and governments, between emerging markets and developed markets and between small businesses and the international private sector.
This CBC/CMF project is focussed on India and is being piloted during the summer of 2007 for a formal launch by HRH Prince Charles in November 2007 at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kampala, before being extended to other countries.

In a recent study in India, it was found that there are about 1.94 million identified bank accounts, indicating only an estimated 12.5 per cent of economically active adult India have direct access to an account.

The Indian research and studies clearly identify three areas that require specific attention and the objectives have thus been set:

1. ESTABLISH RURAL BANKING INFRASTRUCTURE

(Network of Financial Centres with ABMs) Easy access to micro-savings, financial advice, banking and increasing the flow of competitive micro-credit to all parts of India

2. REDUCE TRANSACTION COST

(Zipp™) Dramatically reduce transaction costs for Migrant remittances and banking transaction costs

3. IMPROVE GOVERNANCE

(Biometric registrations) Implement processes to capture, identify and record all relevant data relating to financial transactions for reducing financial crime and allowing economic analysis of behavioural patterns of the populace.