Results 1 - 15 of 117
- Nov, 2011Why is debt financing important for microfinance? Microfinance institutions (MFIs) have three main sources to fund their growth: debt, equity, and deposits (for those allowed to mobilize deposits). In this review, we will focus on the role of debt...
- Sep, 2011This article "Microfinance and the Role of Policies and Procedures in Saturated Markets and During Periods of Fast Growth" evaluates the role that governance, management information systems (MIS), risk management procedures, and lending...
- Aug, 2011Many, although not all, of the problems observed in microfinance sectors recently were triggered by the latest financial crisis and fluctuations in both food and fuel prices. At the same time, many problems began before the most recent financial...
- Jul, 2011Microfinance industry stakeholders increasingly recognize that the social benefits of microfinance cannot be taken for granted. As the boundary between microfinance and traditional finance continues to erode, remaining true to microfinance’s mission can...
- Jul, 2011In a post on the FAI blog, Timothy Ogden asked whether the standard microcredit model depends on growth. Since growth has been a central focus following several recent crises, this is a very worthwhile question. Here, we will look a little bit at what...
- Jun, 2011How can we define responsible financial performance? This is the last article in a four-part series covering our current state of knowledge about the relationship between key financial and social performance indicators, produced as a prelude to the...
- May, 2011How can we define responsible financial performance? This is part three of a four-part series covering our current state of knowledge about the relationship between key financial and social performance indicators, produced as a prelude to the...
- May, 2011How can we define responsible financial performance? This is part two of a four-part series covering our current state of knowledge about the relationship between key financial and social performance indicators, produced as a prelude to the...
- May, 2011How can we define responsible financial performance? This is part one of a four-part series covering our current state of knowledge about the relationship between key financial and social performance indicators, produced as a prelude to the annual...
- Apr, 2011In a comment to our post on cost and profitability in microfinance, John DeWit from SEF – ZAF raised the point that some MFIs may “charge high rates but...not make high returns because of large loan write-offs.”This presents a perfect opportunity to look...
- Mar, 2011Risk is at the heart of financial intermediation, and microfinance is no exception. Since 2008, considerable attention has been focused on the effects of the financial crisis on microfinance institutions (MFIs). However, most discussions on the...
- Apr, 2011In the past week, both David Roodman and MFTransparency have posted on the relationship between yields and APRs for microfinance institutions. We are happy to see the dialogue deepen on what we really know about what MFIs charge their clients. Both posts...
- Mar, 2011The just-announced transition of the software listings from CGAP to the MIX Market site gives us a good opportunity to explore one way in which integrating technology providers and MFI data can open up new information for microfinance practitioners....
- Mar, 2011Recent commentary on microfinance has focused on the idea that there is a big problem with excess commercialization driven by greedy for-profit microcredit lenders. Perceptions of uncontrolled growth and excessive interest charged to vulnerable low...
- Jan, 2011In a recent New York Times opinion piece, Muhammad Yunus proposed government regulation to enforce an interest rate cap of 10 - 15 percentage points over cost of funds for microfinance institutions. The intention of this cap is to prevent profit-...
