A poverty trap is concerned with many possible different self-reinforcing mechanisms which cause misery to persist in a vicious circle.Microfinance is a successful financial innovation to help the poor to sort out credit exclusion, which is one of the poverty traps that prevent billions of under...

Microfinance is a renowned albeit controversial solution for giving financial access to the unbanked, even if micro-transactions increase costs, limiting outreach potential. Economic and financial sustainability of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) is a prerequisite for widening a potentially...

Technical or social innovation, concerning also the creation and commercialization of new products, strategies and management, has a deep actual -- and especially trendy -- impact on microfinance institutions (MFIs), contributing to reshape their business model, with an impact on their overall...

Banana skins are a “slippery” metaphor for risk and are yearly applied to microfinance with a worldwide survey with sub-sections and geographical segmentations, including also Sub-Saharan Africa. Credit risk is still considered the biggest threat, both globally and in Africa, as a...

Global recession, started in 2008, is still proving an unresolved perfect storm and the financial crisis has affected also the real economy, creating widespread social unrest. Microfinance institutions (MFIs) in developing countries seem however less affected by the worldwide turmoil, due to...

The global recession has strongly affected the credibility of the international banking system, damaging also the real economy.Developing countries, not fully integrated with international markets, seem less affected and local microfinance institutions might also allow for a further shelter...