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Innovative remittance distribution arrangement opens up new avenue for financial integration of micro-finance institutions
BRAC, the world's largest national NGO with over 5 million borrowers and 100,000 employees, has signed remittance distribution agreement with Citi Bangladesh. This is one of the first such arrangements with micro-finance institutions in the world.
BRAC's micro finance program covers all 64 districts of Bangladesh with its 182,497 village organizations, and 3,090 branches. In order to meet the growing needs of the members, more than twenty thousand employees of BRAC work for the micro finance program.
This agreement underlines Citi's commitment towards the financial inclusion of micro-finance institutions into the mainstream financial sector, and BRAC's ability to offer a robust distribution channel for the benefits of a wider segment of the population that participate in the economic activitiesE said Fazle Hasan Abed, Chairperson, BRAC.
This innovative arrangement is a significant step forward towards financial inclusion by the largest financial services company in the world ECiti. Under the agreement, BRAC will open up access to remote corners of the country and facilitate transfer of workers remittances that comes through Citi from all over the world.
"Citi and BRAC both appreciate that a remittance is more than just a transfer, it links families. We will leverage our respective institutions to provide the most comprehensive and efficient global remittance service to Bangladesh", said Mamun Rashid, Managing Director and Citigroup Country Officer, Bangladesh.
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As to BRAC
With more than 100,000 employees, BRAC is the largest NGO in the world. Diagnosing poverty in human terms and recognizing its multidimensional nature, BRAC takes holistic approach in striving to fulfill its twin objectives of poverty alleviation and the empowerment of the poor. This approach combines economic development and livelihood generation enterprises with health, education and other social programs. BRAC's outreach covers all 64 districts of the country, and it has been called upon to assist a number of countries, including Afghanistan and Sri Lanka.
As to Citigroup Inc.
Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit, corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth management. Citi's major brands include Citibank, CitiFinancial, Primerica, Citi Smith Barney and Banamex. Additional information may be found at www.citigroup.com or www.citi.com.
Established in 2004, the Citigroup Microfinance Group leverages specialized microfinance expertise with the resources and experience of the company's Corporate and Investment Banking, Consumer, and Global Wealth Management businesses, product groups and employees to work with partners to address the needs of those who are not currently reached or are underserved by formal financial institutions.
Media contact:
BRAC: M. Anwarul Haq Tel: +880-2-9881265/8824180 ext-2105 Email:
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Citi: Mehreen Mahiuddin Tel: +880-2-8833567 ext- 1103 Email:
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July 19, 2007
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