Sparkassenstiftung für internationale Kooperation (SBFIC)

Location : Email :

1992: The foundation of German Sparkassenstiftung for International Cooperation (DSIK)

As long ago as 1961, the Egyptian government asked the German Savings Banks Association (DSGV) to assist it with the creation of credit cooperatives in the Nile Delta. In the 1980s, Germany's Sparkassen repeatedly received requests for support from developing countries wishing to establish financial institutions. German Sparkassenstiftung thus launched projects in Asia – Bangladesh, China and Sri Lanka – and in Africa too - Botswana, Kenya, Namibia and Uganda. In Latin America, it started operating in Colombia and Peru.
Project description: Establishing Sparkassen in Peru

The fall of the iron curtain and the break-up of the Soviet Union brought new challenges for the Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe. The Sparkassen in the former GDR had to be restructured and enabled to operate in a social market economy. Once this task was completed, there followed a surge in the number of requests for support from Central and Eastern European countries.

The Sparkassen-Finanzgruppe responded to this international demand for its expertise and experience by founding the German Sparkassenstiftung for International Cooperation (DSIK). Its task is to promote economic and social development in other countries and to expand development-policy engagement.

In December 1991, the DSGV General Assembly adopted a resolution officially establishing the German Sparkassenstiftung for International Cooperation which opened for business on 1 June 1992.

1994: Making learning fun

This is the year Sparkassenstiftung first used a business game to coach staff in a partner institution – a move that replaced the passive transfer of knowledge with an exchange of experience. In the meantime, our business simulations are amongst the most important instruments used in Sparkassenstiftung project work.

German Sparkassenstiftung's Business Games - An overview

1997: A Philippines-based NGO becomes a bank

German Sparkassenstiftung assisted the Philippines-based non-governmental organisation (NGO) CARD to establish its own bank. CARD went on to obtain a bank license in 1997. Today it advises other microfinance institutions throughout Asia.
Regional Project in South East Asia and Myanmar

Many of CARD's customers have since moved on from the microfinance sector and built up small and medium-sized enterprises. To support them, CARD purchased a small regional bank in 2011 which it transformed into an SME bank with an extended product range. Through assignments lasting several weeks at a time, experienced professionals from Germany's Sparkassen assisted CARD SME with risk management, product and HR development and cost management – thus promoting economic growth in the Philippines.
Project description: Creation of CARD SME Bank

2000: German-Polish Sparkassen Cooperation Office

The German-Polish Savings Banks Cooperation Office was set up to foster cross-frontier business ventures. This German Sparkassenstiftung project ended just two years later with the handover of responsibility to the Sparkassen in the German-Polish frontier region. An innovative project, it proved such a major success it is still continuing to support the region's economy and help bring Europe closer together to this very day.

2002: German-Azerbaijani Fund (GAF)

Loans for small enterprises in Azerbaijan are promoted using the KfW's German-Azerbaijani Fund. Azerbaijan's Finance Ministry commissioned German Sparkassenstiftung to administer this fund in 2006.
Project report: German-Azerbaijani Fund

Mission

Think globally, act locally, cooperate internationally

The Sparkassen were set up in Germany over 200 years ago as microfinance institutions for low-income earners. Since then, they have grown into one of the largest financial groups in the world – one that successfully combines outstanding professionalism with a strong social mandate. Tasked with sharing this successful model with developing countries and emerging economies, German Sparkassenstiftung for International Cooperation (DSIK) is bringing financial services to the people who live there. Ultimately, this is intended to help them become more prosperous and establish stable economic structures of their own.
DSIK assists local financial institutions to manage their businesses in keeping with commercial principles while fulfilling their social responsibilities.

Objective

Universal financial access worldwide

German Sparkassenstiftung provides proactive support to financial institutions that sustainably foster economic and social development at the local, regional or national level through needs-oriented banking services. DSIK’s goal is to assist its partner institutions to become more professional and therefore able to give their customers permanent access to financial services. The main target groups are small and medium-sized enterprises (SME), as well as poor and socially marginalised groups. This orientation to SMEs and low-income earners actually benefits our partners too, because delivering services to these customer segments secures ongoing stable and satisfactory returns.

By strengthening local and regional financial structures, DSIK not only generates development opportunities for wide sections of the population and local companies, but ultimately also helps to create jobs and income.

This complies with the approach and objectives of Germany's Sparkassen. It also has a stabilising effect on the respective financial sector and, as a result, on the given country's economic development. With their 200-year history, Germany's Sparkassen show that sustainable microfinance is only feasible if it is organised efficiently and professionally. And it is these key success factors that German Sparkassenstiftung communicates to its partners through its project work.