CEO Matthew Gamser Accepted the Award at the World Excellence Awards 2018 organized in Istanbul: by the World Business Angel Investors Forum.
Istanbul, February 19, 2018 - The SME Finance Forum was one of nine global organizations awarded by the World Business Angel Investors Forum (WBAF) during its World Excellence Awards on February 19 in Istanbul. The Forum's CEO, Matthew Gamser, accepted the Best Global Organization of the World Supporting SMEs award at a VIP Gala Dinner held at Swissotel.
‘’More than 96% of the world’s economy is driven by small and medium-sized enterprises. 200 million businesses worldwide need financing to invest, grow, and create new jobs. There are institutions all over the world that support SMEs, but one of those institutions is doing more in terms of support than producing specific reports; every year this special institution — the SME Finance Forum — brings together policymakers to find solutions and convenes stakeholders at its annual meeting," Baybars Altuntas, WBAF Chairman said.
Altuntas continued, "The SME Finance Forum was established in 2012 by the G20 Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion as a knowledge center for data, research and the promotion of best practices in SME finance. With its unique ways of supporting SMEs globally, the SME Finance Forum sets an outstanding example for NGOs. The World Business Angels Investment Forum is proud to announce the SME Finance Forum as the recipient of the award for the Best Global Organization of the World Supporting SMEs. It is an honor to present this award to Matthew Gamser, CEO of the SME Finance Forum."
"We are very honored to receive this recognition from our Industry Partner, the World Business Angels Investment Forum. This award serves as a reminder to why we continue to work with our more than 140 members of financial institutions, technology companies, and development finance institutions to share knowledge, spur innovation, and promote the growth of SMEs," Matthew Gamser, CEO of the SME Finance Forum said.
The WBAF World Congress 2018 gathered 1,200 participants from 74 countries and 250 important players of the world’s equity markets attended the award ceremony. The international jury was chaired this year by EBAN president emeritus Paulo Andrez.
Read about the award in the WBAF Excellence Award publication.
About the SME Finance Forum
The SME Finance Forum works to expand access to finance for small and medium businesses (SME). The Forum operates a global membership network that brings together more than 140 financial institutions, technology companies, and development finance institutions to share knowledge, spur innovation, and promote the growth of SMEs. Established in 2012, the SME Finance Forum is managed by IFC.
About the World Business Angels Investment Forum
The World Business Angels Investment Forum (WBAF) is an international organization aiming to ease access to finance for businesses from start up to scale up, with the ultimate goal of generating more jobs and more social justice worldwide. It is committed to collaborating globally to empower world economic development by creating innovative financial instruments for innovators, startups, and SMEs. The Forum interacts with leaders in all areas of society, first and foremost in business and political spheres, to help assess needs and establish goals, bearing in mind that the public interest is of paramount importance. WBAF engages a wide range of institutions, both public and private, local and international, commercial and academic to help shape the global agenda.
The WBAF World Congress 2018: 1,200 participants from 74 countries, 124 speakers from 35 countries, 26 panel discussions, 17 keynote speeches from 17 legendary leaders, 9 fireside chats, 5 presentations, 1 governmental meetup, 2 workshops, 2 master classes, 1 short course
