Portrait
Vision
Improve the quality of life of low-income and vulnerable households, smallholder farmers and MSMEs, particularly women
SCBF is an...
innovative public-private platform to enhance inclusive finance for low-income clients, especially women, smallholder farmers, and MSMEs, in emerging contexts. SCBF enables, with funding, financial service providers to access the expertise required to develop, tailor and scale innovative solutions that address the unique challenges these low income populations face.
Since inception to end of 2022, SCBF has co-funded over 188 projects across 50 countries, reaching over 3.4 million people with financial services that improve their living standards, build resilience and advance economic empowerment. SCBF is currently updating its strategy and financial instruments to better meet the needs of social enterprises/innovative organisations that looks to advance financial inclusion.
Our goals



01
Building resilience to protect living standards …
… access to savings and insurance products builds resilience to better respond to the negative effects of adverse weather events, catastrophes, death or illness of the breadwinner or of conflict.
02
Advancing economic empowerment to increase income and asset building …
… tailored loan, leasing and insurance products enable end-clients to invest in productive activities, increase income through increased access to markets, create employment opportunities and build assets.
03
Accessing essential services to improve current and future generations’ living standards …
… adequate payment services and channels, enable access to electricity, clean water, sanitation, education and healthcare on affordable and predictable terms.
Our interventions
SCBF co-funds technical assistance projects in developing and emerging countries to enable the development of client-centric financial products, channels and services (FPCSs) to increase financial inclusion.
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Innovation / Product Upscaling
Co-funding technical assistance (TA) to develop and scale innovative client centric financial products, channels and services (FPCSs) to reach SCBF’s targeted end-clients.
Feasibility Study
Co-funding feasibility studies and pilots required to introduce new FPCSs and supporting existing financial institutions, FinTechs and InsurTechs.
Only available to SCBF Members.
Financial Education
Co-funding financial education for SCBF’s target end-client that are essential to accessing FPCSs.
Only available to SCBF Members.
The challenge
Our uniqueness - Public-Private Partnerships
The public-private development partnership (PPDP) approach combines the complementary expertise and resources of Swiss competence centres in microfinance, microinsurance, FinTech and InsurTech, Swiss impact investors, and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) to contribute to global financial inclusion efforts.
SCBF members
Public institutions, asset managers, corporates, consultants, financial institutions, and civil-society organisations.
Financial sector partners (FSPs)
Leveraging Swiss expertise and private investment to support over 122 FSPs in 48 countries.
Technical assistance providers (TAs)
Know-how and innovation transferred to FSPs by over 53 TA providers.