Microfinance News

blogs.cgdev — By David Roodman - I promised to let you when the recording of Monday’s debate was posted. It is now up.

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Bob Kennedy, Executive Director of WDI and Tom Lantos Professor of Business Administration, Ross School of Business, University of Michigan This post is part of the Center for Financial Inclusion’s Expert Exchange: Building A Movement Toward Financial Inclusion by 2020, cultivating conversation around the goal of reaching full financial...

blogs.cgdev — By David Roodman - Sanjay Sinha points out that government-backed Self-Help Groups (SHGs) have indebted the poor of Andhra Pradesh three times as much as the microfinance institutions (MFIs) have. That certainly should be food for thought for anyone who heaps calumny on the MFIs. Still, I think an element is...

microcapital — Crowdfunding platforms, intermediary services that act as an interface between “the public” and the “crowdfunded” project, can offer increased audience size, reduced transaction costs and decreased “legislative complexities,” reportedly says Daniela Castrataro, co-founder of UK-based social media consulting agency “twintangibles” [1]. Ms Castrataro expounds on two models of crowdfunding platforms...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Julie Shea The microfinance rating agency MicroRate recently published “Role Reversal Revisited,” which charges that government-funded Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) continue to crowd-out private funding for microfinance. The premise of “Role Reversal Revisited” is that DFIs should invest where private sources of funding don’t yet dare go because the...

blogs.cgdev — By David Roodman - Yesterday, Milford Bateman and I debated. Chuck Waterfield moderated. I’m told the video will be posted later this week. The organizers designated note-takers, and I think their work will be posted too. I’ll let you know. It was an intense experience. I think Milford and Chuck...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Lisa Hall, President & CEO of Calvert Foundation This post is part of the Center for Financial Inclusion’s Expert Exchange: Building A Movement Toward Financial Inclusion by 2020, cultivating conversation around the goal of reaching full financial inclusion by 2020. For further questions about this series, write to...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — Support for the Smart Campaign will allow client protection assessments, certification testing, pilot projects, and translation and dissemination of tools to foster adherence to Client Protection Principles at leading microfinance institutions. Washington, DC, January 27, 2012 — The Smart Campaign, a global initiative to incorporate strong client protection principles across the...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Danielle Donza Change. People fear it, they avoid it and resist it, but ultimately change is the only constant in life. Some of the microfinance industry’s heavy hitters have weighed in recently on how they believe the industry is – or needs to be – changing. Marguerite Robinson, Michael...

microcapital — Azure Partners, a Swiss company specializing in “socially responsible investments,” has launched Azure Global Microfinance Fund, a microfinance-focused “fund of funds” that will accept investments from both private and institutional investors [1]. A fund of funds is defined as an “investment strategy of holding a portfolio of other investment funds...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Sonja E. Kelly The Center for Financial Inclusion at ACCION International has set an audacious commitment to build toward full financial inclusion by 2020. As part of this movement, we are starting a conversation on this blog. We look forward to what will come out of this. In September, we...

microcapital — Kiva, a US-based microfinance intermediary, is launching a new platform, Kiva Zip, enabling users to lend directly to microentrepreneurs around the world. Kiva Zip is currently running as a pilot program in Kenya and the US city of San Francisco, California. Loans are disbursed in Kenya via M-Pesa, a mobile...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Danielle Donza The story of crises and failures in microfinance often seem to involve the same underlying problem: weak governance. “Weathering the Storm: Lessons in Microfinance Crisis Survival from Those Who Have Been There” found that “good governance is the ultimate backstop for crisis prevention and management,” and the...

technology.cgap — I think it is safe to say that the financial inclusion world has started to get used to the idea of thinking about financial service providers more broadly than traditional microfinance institutions, rural banks and financial cooperatives. With the recent growth of mobile network operators, technology providers and agent network...

assets.newamerica — It’s unsurprising that the program formerly known as food stamps, currently the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, didn’t receive a mention at last night’s State of the Union address. The policies the President discussed outlined an aspirational portrait of where the country should be and the changes he believes are necessary...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Holly Padgett In my opinion, blogs provide a great way to stay involved and up-to-date with current discussions about topics of interest. However, if you ever feel bombarded with information (and how does anyone have time to follow all the interesting blogs?), I understand. After all, at last...

grameenfoundation.wordpress — Emily Gordon is a graduate of Lehigh University, where she studied International Relations, Spanish, and Business. She spent a semester in Buenos Aires, Argentina studying foreign relations and working with a human rights organization. Emily has worked with a variety of international non-profits, including interning with Grameen Foundation’s Bankers without...

assets.newamerica — By Alejandra Montes, Save the ChildrenOriginally posted on www.youthsave.orgRecently, Jaya Burathoki, Save the Children Project Manager in Nepal, blogged about the highlights from the Citi – FT Financial Education Summit in Jakarta. She raised interesting takeaways, such as the strategy that different governments in East Asia are using in the...

microcapital — The Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, a US-based nonprofit, has taken an equity stake in BASIX Sub-K iTransactions Limited, the mobile payments unit of BASIX Group, an Indian entity providing services to poor people including microfinance, health insurance and agricultural and business development services [1]. While the size of the investment...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Meghan Greene Jean-Philippe de Schrevel of BlueOrchard had this to say about the Microfinance CEO Working Group’s just-released “Road Map for the Microfinance Industry: Focusing on Responsible and Client-Centered Microfinance.” Dear colleagues, We have read your letter “Road Map for the Microfinance Industry.” We fully share your vision and commitments. We...

centerforfinancialinclusionblog.wordpress — > Posted by Ignacio Mas and Claire Alexandre, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation A policymaker’s dilemma: how to pursue a policy of access to a bank account for everyone, while at the same time erecting regulatory barriers to the opening of those accounts to prevent their misuse. It’s like pushing the accelerator...

nextbillion — Authored by: Myra Valenzuela(Pictured: Abduallah Abdel Qassim, 47, a partner in aluminum shop making window frames that received microloan from Social Welfare Fund for equipment. Image credit: World Bank Photo Collection). Editor's Note: This post originally appeared on the World Bank's Development Marketplace blog, where updates on this competition will posted.  High...

nextbillion — Organization: Skoll Centre for Social EntrepreneurshipLocation: GBThe Skoll Centre is looking to hire an entrepreneurial leader to help grow the Centre as the Skoll Centre Manager. This is a senior position within the team dedicated to designing and driving forth overall strategy and its operational implementation. They should have deep...

nextbillion — Authored by: Stuart HartEditor's note: This post originally appeared on Stuart Hart's blog. Since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, economies of scale have ruled the day, with massive investments in power plants, pipelines, factories, transmission lines, dams, and highways to more efficiently serve the burgeoning consumption needs of the rising consumer classes....

grameenfoundation.wordpress — The founding members of the Microfinance CEO Working Group — which includes the CEOs of pioneering microfinance organizations ACCION, FINCA, Freedom from Hunger, Grameen Foundation USA, Opportunity International, Pro Mujer, VisionFund International and Women’s World Banking — have just released the “Road Map for the Microfinance Industry: Focusing on Responsible...