Opportunity International (OI) is Mambu's first customer in China.

Building on its microcredit heritage, OI China is expanding its small business lending capabilities to help provide working capital to this sector. It offers loans of US$20,000 up to US$1 million to small and medium-sized business, some of which have more than 100 employees, in a drive to support job creation that supports greater financial inclusion.

OI China sought a cloud-native platform that could support rapid new product development, get to market quickly, and easily integrate with mobile, a key channel as the organisation looks to improve its reach in rural China.

"Leveraging cloud technology and greater integration with mobile channels were key goals in our strategic roadmap for 2014 and Mambu's cloud banking platform offered us the perfect solution in both areas," said Robert Westcott, chief information officer at Opportunity International. "For OI China in particular, we wanted a platform that enables us to operate more efficiently and effectively, and expand our services to more clients quickly. To do that we needed a modern technology solution that would enable us to rapidly create, launch and service appropriate loan products so we can have a greater impact on lives. Mambu delivers that business agility."

In order to support OI China, Mambu established a Chinese cloud environment with Alibaba's Aliyun cloud, the servers and datacentres for which are located in Beijing, China.

"With nearly two thirds of the world's micro, small and medium businesses currently underserved, there is no doubt about the size of the opportunity, yet reaching this market has proved challenging in the past, as providers are constrained by inflexible systems that just can't support business needs," said Eugene Danilkis, co-founder and chief executive at Mambu. "Opportunity International is a forward-thinking organisation that has recognised the value and impact that Mambu's cloud banking platform can bring to its business operations, allowing it to rapidly develop and extend its capabilities so they can focus on their vision of creating a world in which all people have the opportunity to achieve a life free from poverty."