Fundación Crecer

What Fundación Crecer does

Fundación Crecer is a Chilean non-profit foundation founded in 2002 by Juan Alberto Fernández and Cecilia Carter, headquartered in Santiago. It serves women-headed households and microentrepreneurs living in poverty or social exclusion across six communes of the Santiago Metropolitan Region (Huechuraba, La Pintana, Lo Prado, Renca, Estación Central, and Pedro Aguirre Cerda). The organization operates a portfolio of eight Community Banks (Bancos Comunitarios), each composed of 20-25 members who act as mutual guarantors for microcredits ranging from $100,000 to $500,000 CLP with 16-week repayment cycles. The methodology is a direct adaptation of Muhammad Yunus's Grameen Bank model, substituting social collateral for financial collateral and yielding a 100% repayment rate and sub-2% default rate across the portfolio.

The foundation's product suite is structured around four pillars: microcredits through Community Banks, individual loans of up to $5,000,000 CLP from the Development Fund for established members, training programs in business administration and financial management, and ongoing accompaniment by social workers. Adjacent services include the 'Juntos Crecemos' ontological coaching workshop, the 'Emprendedoras Conectadas' digital literacy program delivered in partnership with Fundación Kodea and Google, and the revolving fund structure that recycles repayments into new loans. As of 2023, approximately 350 loans per year totaling 150 million CLP are disbursed, with over 1 billion CLP in cumulative disbursements since inception and 90% of beneficiaries being women heads of household.

The business model is donation-dependent rather than revenue-generating. Funding streams include monthly 'socios' memberships starting at UF 1, annual digital fundraising campaigns (the 2023 colecta raised 31.1M CLP from 760 donations), corporate CSR partnerships (CNC, Zest, Escenix), and recycled microcredit repayments. Microcredit interest and fees sustain the revolving fund but do not constitute organizational revenue. Distribution is community-led: weekly in-person meetings in each commune, supplemented by online donation platforms (WebPay, Mach, Servipag, BancoEstado) and referrals through municipal programs such as 'Mujeres Jefas de Hogar'.

Name

Fundación Crecer

Legal name

Fundación Crecer

Website

https://fundacioncrecer.cl

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fundación Crecer is a Chilean non-profit foundation, founded in 2002 and headquartered in Santiago, that provides microcredit, training, and social accompaniment to women-headed households and microentrepreneurs across six vulnerable communes using a Grameen Bank-inspired community banking model with mutual guarantee groups.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Microfinance and Community Development Services

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321)

SIC

Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153), Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

Microenterprise Group Lending (Joint Liability) (FSAKAGAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Secured Microloans (Community/Nonprofit, Collateralized) (FSAKALAJ), Microfinance & Community P2P Lending (FSAKAHAD), Community Foundations (BPAGAKAB)

Keywords

• Microfinance services
• Community banking
• Microcredit lending
• Entrepreneurship training
• Social work accompaniment

Headquarters

HQ city

Santiago

HQ country

Chile

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations from individuals (monthly members): Monthly contributions from individual donors who become 'socios' of the foundation. Many start with donations of UF 1 per month through automatic bank charges (PAC) or credit card (PAT).
2. Annual digital fundraising campaigns: Annual digital collect campaigns that mobilize volunteers to raise funds from their networks. The 2023 campaign raised over $31,100,000 from 760 donations with an average donation of $27,114.
3. Microcredit repayment: Microcredits of $100,000 to $500,000 with 16-week repayment cycles. Interest and repayments are recycled into the revolving fund to support more entrepreneurs.
4. Individual loans: Individual loans from the Development Fund (Fondo de Desarrollo) of up to $5,000,000 with repayment periods up to 24 months. These provide larger capital for established community bank members.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Fundación Crecer is a non-profit foundation that delivers microfinance, training, and social accompaniment to microentrepreneurs living in poverty, primarily women heads of household, in vulnerable communes of Santiago, Chile. Its core offering is structured around four pillars: community bank microcredits ($100,000–$500,000 pesos with mutual guarantee), individual loans from the Development Fund (up to $5,000,000 pesos), business and digital skills training, and ongoing social worker accompaniment. The methodology is inspired by Muhammad Yunus's Grameen Bank and operates through 8 community banks across 6 communes.

Product overview

Fundación Crecer is a non-profit organization offering a comprehensive microfinance and entrepreneurship support ecosystem centered on four core pillars: microcredits through community banks, individual loans, training programs, and social worker accompaniment. The organization operates community banks (Bancos Comunitarios) where groups of 20-25 members provide mutual guarantee for microcredits, while the Development Fund enables larger individual loans for established entrepreneurs. Supporting services include the 'Juntos Crecemos' coaching workshop, the 'Emprendedoras Conectadas' digital literacy program in partnership with Kodea, and the 'Historias de Valor' testimonial book. All programs are financed through a Revolving Fund for microcredits and a Development Fund for individual loans, with additional support through digital fundraising campaigns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Banco Comunitario: Community bank groups formed by 15–25 microentrepreneurs who provide mutual guarantee for microcredits, organized by geographic area.
• Préstamo Individual

Products and services

• Microcréditos (Bancos Comunitarios) Community bank-based microcredits where groups of 20-25 people act as mutual guarantors for loans up to $500,000 pesos, with 16-week repayment cycles. Methodology inspired by the Grameen Bank model of Muhammad Yunus, targeting microentrepreneurs excluded from traditional banking.
• Préstamos Individuales Individual loans from the Development Fund offering credits up to $5,000,000 pesos with repayment terms up to 24 months. Requires at least one year of participation in a Community Bank and demonstrated business responsibility.
• Capacitación Training programs in business administration, financial management, and soft skills development delivered through workshops and coaching sessions to help entrepreneurs improve their family and business realities.
• Acompañamiento Ongoing social worker support and monitoring of entrepreneurs, including weekly community bank meetings, personalized guidance, and psychological/emotional support to address the needs of people in poverty situations.
• Programa de Capacitación Digital (Emprendedoras Conectadas) Digital literacy program developed in partnership with Fundación Kodea and Google, training entrepreneurs in e-commerce, social media marketing, Canvas business model, smartphone use, and financial education. Includes 20 hours of instruction and seed capital for qualifying participants.
• Taller 'Juntos Crecemos' Ontological coaching-based workshop designed to create group cohesion and facilitate effective communication among community bank members. Promotes values such as commitment, trust, responsibility, and respect.
• Libro 'Historias de Valor' 100-page coffee table book compiling 15 testimonials from microentrepreneurs sharing their life stories of overcoming adversity through the foundation's programs. Sold for $30,000 pesos with free delivery in select communes.
• Fondo Rotatorio Revolving fund that finances the microcredit program, allowing continuous loan cycles where repayments are recycled to benefit new entrepreneurs within the community banks.
• Fondo de Desarrollo Development Fund that sources the individual loan program, providing larger credit amounts (up to $5,000,000 pesos) for entrepreneurs who have demonstrated commitment and growth in community bank participation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1 billion pesos disbursed in microcredits over 20 years
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers14 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Fundación KodeacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2023Kodea trained two foundation instructors through the 'Programa de Capacitación para Mujeres Emprendedoras Conectadas' (PMEC) in partnership with Google. These instructors then trained 34 beneficiaries in digital commerce, covering topics like social media, Canva for branding, Canvas business model, financial education, and using smartphones as business tools. The foundation aims to extend this program to all active users in 2024.
• Red de Microfinanzas de ChilecoreOthers · 1 October 2023Foundation is part of the Chilean Microfinance Network, which represents Chile in the Latin American Microfinance Association (ALAMI) with 314 institutions from 6 countries. The network enables knowledge exchange, experience sharing, and microfinance regulation dialogue at the Latin American level.
• Fundación TrascenderminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Partnership for digital literacy pilot workshop with 15 entrepreneurs from the 'Juntos Crecemos' community bank in La Pintana. The program covered mobile device use, Google tools, and social networks over 4 sessions.
• ZestminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 December 2021Zest, a hub for SMEs and entrepreneurs, donates 1% of monthly sales to the foundation and offers support for micro-entrepreneurs to sell on their online marketplace platform. This 6-month initial agreement benefits over 100 foundation beneficiaries, mostly women heads of household, enabling them to expand their businesses nationally through e-commerce.
• Fundación PlagiominorOthers · 1 November 2021Donated 180 books from 'Santiago en 100 palabras' to promote reading and art among beneficiaries and volunteers.
• EscenixminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 12 May 2020Theater streaming platform partnership for COVID-19 fundraising. The foundation sold digital tickets to the play 'A la cabeza del ganado', raising $6.5 million. Ticket buyers received 2 months of Escenix membership. The campaign was the foundation's most successful theater fundraising event.
• Cámara Nacional de Comercio, Servicios y Turismo de Chile (CNC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 August 2019Alliance to combat commerce informality in Chile. CNC promotes the foundation's social programs to its member companies, enabling access to corporate social responsibility programs, volunteer opportunities, and fundraising. The agreement allows the foundation to scale its methodology to more micro-entrepreneurs while helping CNC's mission of formalization. Duration of one year with renewal option.
• GoogleminorOthersGoogle partners with Kodea to deliver the 'Programa de Capacitación para Mujeres Emprendedoras Conectadas' (PMEC) which trained foundation instructors and beneficiaries in digital skills.
• Comunidad de Organizaciones SolidariasminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration during COVID-19 pandemic to manage direct support possibilities for affected micro-entrepreneurs.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves11 records

Broad incumbents

• Hogar de Cristo: Largest Chilean social organization fighting poverty through diverse programs. Comparable mission (poverty alleviation) and Chilean nonprofit context, but broader scope beyond microfinance/entrepreneurship.

Direct peers

• Fundación Trascender: Chilean nonprofit that partnered with Fundación Crecer to deliver digital literacy training to community bank entrepreneurs. Comparable in Chilean nonprofit context and overlapping beneficiary base, though operating in adjacent rather than identical services.
• Prodemu: Chilean foundation focused on women's economic autonomy and entrepreneurship training, particularly women heads of household. Directly comparable target beneficiary (women in vulnerable situations); Fundación Crecer's new ED came from Prodemu.
• ProMujer: Latin American microfinance and development organization providing loans, training, and health services to low-income women across multiple countries. Directly comparable target beneficiary (women microentrepreneurs) and combined credit-plus-accompanement model.
• Fondo Esperanza: Chile's largest microfinance NGO using group lending methodology inspired by Grameen Bank, serving low-income entrepreneurs across Chile. Highly comparable in target market, methodology, and product offering, but at significantly larger scale than Fundación Crecer.
• FINCA International: Global microfinance network using village banking (group lending) methodology to serve low-income entrepreneurs in Latin America and globally. Highly comparable methodology (group mutual guarantee), though operating at much larger international scale.
• Grameen Bank: The original microfinance institution founded by Muhammad Yunus in Bangladesh that pioneered the group lending methodology Fundación Crecer directly replicates. Methodological peer and conceptual inspiration, though operating in a different geography and regulatory context.

Regional players

• BancoSol: Bolivian commercial bank originally converted from a nonprofit microfinance NGO serving microentrepreneurs with group lending methodology. Comparable Grameen-inspired approach and target market; operates as a regulated bank rather than nonprofit.
• Aldea Global (Prizma): Microfinance organization serving microentrepreneurs in Latin America with group lending methodology. Comparable Grameen-inspired approach and target market in the region; operates in different countries than Fundación Crecer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fundacioncrecer.cl
• Instagraminstagram.com/fundacioncrecer.cl
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fundaci%C3%B3ncrecer

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Fundación Crecer