AMAS update
AMAS and Norwegian Mission Alliance has entered into an agreement to sell Banco D-Miro in Ecuador. D-Miro will be merged with the largest Microfinance bank in the country, Banco Solidario.
D-Miro has been a dear member of our family since 1996. Since then, though, the share of the Ecuadorian population living under extreme poverty has been reduced from 30% to 5%. The microfinance market has also become increasingly competitive. Large, corporate banks have penetrated this segment. Thus, there is a drive for consolidation as scale is detrimental to remain as a strong player.
We are confident that Banco Solidario will be a good partner for D-Miro. We know the institution and their profile well, and do believe that the new, merged entity will offer our clients a wide range of quality products. The merger is expected to be finalized by the end of Q2 2020.
The news has been covered by Finansavisen in Norway.
Organizational changes
Hugh Sinclair has been a vital part of the AMAS team for almost a decade, starting in September 2011 as a board director of Banco D-Miro in Ecuador. Through his consultancy and various roles in the AMAS group, from advisor to Chief Operating Officer, Hugh has applied his extensive competence in the microfinance area to the benefit of us as a management company and to Banco D-Miro (Ecuador) and Diaconia MDI (Liberia) especially. He has been frequently to both countries and has displayed an unexhausted desire for continuous improvement. We have been privileged to have Hugh onboard and are thankful for his dedication, commitment and contribution. Hugh has however left the AMAS group to pursue new endeavors closer to home and to be able to spend more time with his family, a choice we fully support, and we thank him for his time with us.
The new year also marks a couple of additions to the AMAS group. Eelco Mol and Oddleif Hatlem will be joining the team. More information about them here. We are delighted to welcome both of them to the team!