Microfinance institutions (MFIs) are often seen by aid practitioners as a manifestly effective means of improving the position of the poor. Despite this widely held view, detailed research studies have been much more guarded about the impact of MFIs. In particular, several studies have raised...

Summary The current emphasis in the microfinance industry is a shift from donor-funded to commercially sustainable operations. This article evaluates the impact of access to microloans from the Khushhali Bank--Pakistan's first and largest microfinance bank which operates on commercial...

Following a comprehensive overview by the editor, this book offers a detailed assessment of the results of directly channelling resources to the poor and extensively discusses the experience of five Asian countries – India, Indonesia, the People’s Republic of China, the Philippines...

The economy of Taipei,China was able to escape the contagion of the Asian financial crisis and remains well insulated from the type of external shocks that forced other economies in the region into currency devaluations and deep recession in 1997. Since that time however, internal pressures have...

First, using data on the presence of foreign banks via branching as well as subsidiaries, the study shows that the presence of foreign banks in the four crisis-hit countries is actually much larger than has been previously reported once the presence of foreign branches is accounted for in the...