In spite of increasing pressure on microfinance institutions (MFIs) operating in developing countries to transform into regulated financial intermediaries, to date, no study has investigated whether regulated MFIs actually achieve better financial results and reach more poor clients than...

This paper applies the financing constraint approach to study whether microfinance institutions improved access to credit for microenterprises in Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to this approach, microenterprises with improved assess to credit rely less on internal funds for their investments....

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a statistical examination of the factors affecting the performance of microfinance institutions (MFIs) operating in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Design/methodology/approach – Data on MFIs operating in Eastern Europe and Central Asia...

Research on financial constraints of very small firms is scarce because it is difficult to observe and measure their transactions. Previous studies on small enterprises in post-communist countries have focused either on the effect of financing constraints on business growth (Budina et al., 2000,...

Published research on credit counseling and mortgage termination is surprisingly scarce, despite substantial growth in this industry. While the purpose of counseling is to assist low-income borrowers to improve their handling of debt and thereby reduce default, counseling may also improve the...

The performance, management, and risk exposure of financial institutions operating in rural and agricultural markets determine the cost of agriculture’s ongoing access to financial capital. The evolution of general banking and agricultural finance research contributions in the structure,...

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence of the positive impact of the FCS lending on farm incomes which should be useful to policymakers as they consider reforms and further support for this 100-year-old major agricultural lender. Design/methodology/approach The authors...

Purpose – In this paper, the authors set out to establish if there is a link between finance and economic growth in rural areas. The purpose of this paper is to evaluate the relation between credit by major lenders in rural areas – commercial banks and Farm Credit System (FCS) institutions...