UK pension funds are among investors backing a fundraising initiative for institutions that lend to the poor in developing countries. US investment bank Morgan Stanley and BlueOrchard Finance, a Geneva-based investment company, have created a vehicle that borrows from institutional investors to lend to a selection of microfinance institutions (MFIs) in countries from Colombia to Azerbaijan. The MFIs in turn make loans as small as $50 (£29) to fund first-time entrepreneurs excluded from conventional financial services. 
Telegraph | Money | Pension funds turn to developing world