Over the years, microfinance has been purported to have experienced enormous progress and is seen to contribute towards poverty reduction by extending finance to people previously excluded from formal financial markets. However, the question on how microfinance social performance is assessed...

This paper advances the study of Fiordelisi and Molyneux (2010) by examining the shareholder value efficiency and its determinants for a large sample of Japanese banks between 1999 and 2011. A new, specifically tailored measure of the Economic Value Added approach, based on the shadow price of...

Microfinance promises to trim down poverty. To achieve this noble objective microfinance institutions (MFIs) have to become steady profitable because donor constancy is not a given. Thus important question is: what factors drive the financial sustainability of MFIs? Using data on 217 MFIs in 101...

Falling government and donor funding, which has traditionally supported microfinance, is followed by an expansion of financially self-sustainable Microfinance Institutions (MFIs). This development has raised the concern as to whether the social goals of traditional microfinance would be equally...

This study examines the efficiency of the financial sector in African countries. It aims to investigate if ìThe financial institutions are capable of distributing the economic resources efficiently. Empirical evidence supports a sound intermediation process and efficiency in the banking system...

Group liability in microcredit purports to improve repayment rates through peer screening, monitoring, and enforcement. However, it may create excessive pressure, and discourage reliable clients from borrowing. Two randomized trials tested the overall effect, as well as specific mechanisms. The...

We develop a quantitative model for structured microfinance instruments, which are regarded as an important means for refinancing microfinance institutions. The quantitative credit risk model presented takes into account the peculiarities of microfinance institutions and can be used for pricing...

We consider a model where poverty minimizing donors fund microfinance lenders that are heterogeneous in cost. Under asymmetric information the donors face a choice whether to issue grants or to charge the lenders for funds. While charging for funds leads to higher interest rates, a higher rate...

The world economy is still suffering from the severe global financial crisis that caused the failure of several banks. This has encouraged economists worldwide to consider alternative financial solutions and attention has been focused on Islamic banking and finance as an alternative model....

This paper examines the factors that inhibit growth in the microfinance sector in Tanzania by measuring the perceptions about such issues among Microfinance Institutions (MFIs). The most important include the educational levels of clients, lack of capital to lend to clients and staff related...