One of the most salient ethical debates concerning microcredit pertains to the unexpectedly high rates of interest charged on microloans. Microcredit is supposed to be to the advantage of borrowers in some of the poorest regions of the world, but at the same time commercial institutions need to...

We use an innovative methodology to analyze social responsibility in double bottom line institutions such as microfinance institutions. We provide empirical evidence on the distribution of the generated surplus between the key stakeholders of one of the most famous MFIs worldwide: Banco...

What are the drivers of productivity surplus distribution to microfinance stakeholders? This paper shows that the size of the institution is the main indicator that can explain the gain in productivity surplus but also the surplus given to clients (decrease of interest rates) and staff....

A major debate in microfinance focuses on the existence of a trade-off between the financial sustainability of microfinance institutions (MFIs) and their outreach to poor clients. This paper adds to this debate by analyzing whether financial and social efficiency are mutually exclusive in a...

Inclusive financial sectors are essential in terms of poverty alleviation. While microcredit can be governed as a private good, self-managed civil society organizations propose an alternative way of managing financial services. Brazil's Community Development Banks (CDBs) are a growing and...

This paper shines light on subsidy-dependent microfinance institutions (MFIs). Firstly, our model shows that subsidy uncertainty can have pervasive effects on MFIs’ poverty-reduction mission. In particular, we argue that supply-driven uncertainty can lead to mission drift. MFIs maximize...

In recent years, development practice has seen that microfinance institutions (MFIs), beyond their financial and social objectives, start considering their environmental bottom line. Yet, little is known on the characteristics of institutions involved in environmental management. For the first...

This paper starts from the observation that 23% of the world’s microfinance institutions (MFIs) manage without subsidies. We examine how unsubsidized institutions cope with their social mission. Overall, the lack of subsidies worsens social performances. However, our results show that...

Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are alternative financial providers offering financial services to people typically excluded from the standard banking sector. While most MFIs are active in developing countries, there is also a young and developing microfinance sector in Europe; however, very...

Community or complementary currency systems have spread all around the world. Most often, they have been promoted as tools to foster sustainable development albeit they differ in terms of specific objectives. While many case studies have tried to assess the actual impact of these systems, there...