Proximity Finance

Proximity Finance operates as a farmer-focused microfinance institution within Myanmar, functioning as a key component of its parent social enterprise, Proximity Designs. The organization was established to address the significant gap in financial services available to rural farming households, a segment often overlooked by traditional banks due to small loan sizes and seasonal income streams.

The history of the parent company, Proximity Designs, began in 2004, co-founded by Jim Taylor and Debbie Aung Din. Both graduates of Harvard's Kennedy School, they shared a vision to create a social business to serve rural families in Myanmar, inspired by their earlier work with social entrepreneur John Perkins in the Mississippi Delta. This experience taught them the value of living and working among the communities they aim to serve. Proximity Designs initially started as a program under International Development Enterprises (IDE) before becoming fully independent in 2008. Proximity Finance was later launched in 2010 as the microfinance arm. Following the devastation of Cyclone Nargis in 2008, the organization leveraged its distribution network to deliver over $17 million in emergency aid, assisting 1.2 million farmers and solidifying its role in the region.

The core of Proximity Finance's business is providing direct-to-farmer loans and savings products tailored to the agricultural cycle. This model allows farmers to repay loans when they have income from their harvest, rather than through fixed monthly installments. The institution's field staff, largely hired from the local communities, travel directly to villages, which saves customers time and money. Revenue is generated from these lending activities. In 2020, earned revenue covered 70-73% of operating expenses across the wider Proximity organization. Proximity Finance itself is backed by a blend of philanthropic capital and private investment, having raised a $14 million equity package in 2020 from development finance institutions like Finnfund, Nordic Microfinance Initiative (NMI), and Proparco.

Beyond finance, the broader Proximity Designs entity offers a suite of products and advisory services. These include affordable irrigation technologies like foot-powered pumps and drip systems, as well as agronomy services providing guidance on seed selection, soil health, and pest management. These offerings are developed through a human-centered design process, involving ethnographers and engineers who create and test prototypes in a local design lab to ensure they are affordable and effective for families earning less than $2 a day. The organization's distribution network of private agro-dealers and village-level agents reaches approximately 80% of Myanmar's rural population.

Keywords: microfinance, agricultural finance, Myanmar, smallholder farmers, rural development, social enterprise, impact investing, farm loans, financial inclusion, agronomy services, irrigation technology, direct lending, farmer-focused banking, rural credit, sustainable agriculture, Cyclone Nargis recovery, development finance, social business, Proximity Designs, Jim Taylor, Debbie Aung Din, Southeast Asia finance, agricultural loans