The purpose of this technical guide is to provide a standard format for the analysis of institutions that provide financial services to the microenterprise sector. The technical guide outlines the appropriate techniques and scope of analysis for evaluating and designing programs of support to...

This technical guide highlights 14 of the most commonly used indicators published by the Roundtable Group and illustrates how they are used. It provides some explanation and analysis of the indicators for those who are interested in understanding their application as well as weaknesses. For each...

This paper presents a synopsis of the current state of the microfinance industry in Latin America. It provides a rough assessment of the achievement and outreach of the industry; it offers revealing information on the financial performance of 20 microfinance institutions; and it outlines some of...

This paper seeks to measure the impact on small businesses in Chile of the Seed Capital Program implemented by Chile's Technical Cooperation Services (Servicio de Cooperación Técnica SERCOTEC). The results are mixed. On the one hand, the impact of sales is positive but its statistical...

The purpose of this study is to show how microfinance services may undergo the impacts of climate change, to analyze the opportunities available for MFIs and to propose concrete actions. This paper was commissioned by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in coordination with the Sustainable...

The objective of this report is to present an early update for the performance of the Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) in regional, sub-regional and certain national markets at the close of the 2010 financial year in terms of coverage credit types, finance structure, and risk and profitability.

This report outlines the findings of the Economist Intelligence Unit's in-depth analysis of the microfinance business environment in 55 countries. The index that underlies this report allows countries and regions to be compared across two broad categories: Regulatory Framework and Practices,...

Specialized financial institutions (SFIs) have a clear interest in tapping the small business lending market, but frequently lack the know-how for doing so in a sustainable manner. This guide outlines the key conditions and steps SFIs need to take in order to set up and develop sustainable small...

In recent years, microfinance has greatly expanded the outreach of the financial system to millions of households in the Latin American and Caribbean region. The purpose of this report is to offer an updated snapshot of access to financial services in the region. The approach is two-fold. In the...

The current study gathers together a large database on the funding side of Latin American microfinance institutions (MFIs), providing detailed coverage of 61 regulated MFIs in nine Latin American countries with major microfinance markets. The study goes on to examine the relative costs of the...