EMW 2012 Archive
Microfinance of the Future?
Blaine Stephens (MIX Market): A market lady needs a sum to invest in her business, pulls up her phone, checks her savings balance, realizes she’ll need a loan to supplement her available savings, will enter the amount
Are banks the future of Microfinance?
Hans Deiter Seibel: the current financial institutions in Europe have deep roots. They arose in 18th and 19th century in Germany and elsewhere — in Italy going back to the 15th century — and these institutions were
AIFM Directive: Regulating Microfinance Investments
Axelle Ferey (Ernst & Young): Alternative Investment Fund Management (AIFM) directive is an EU-wide requirement that lays out a framework for qualifying as an European Social Investment Fund (EuSEF): Applies to funds that are below $100 million Grandfathers
Blue Orchard: the most important risk in microfinance investing is liquidity
Sebastien Juhen (Blue Orchard): What do clients expect from microfinance investments? Mainly social return. But microfinance investing comes with risk, the most important of these being liquidity. After all, we don’t invest in bonds, but in illiquid
Microrate/Luminis: Seeking Transparency in Microfinance Investing
Sebastian von Stauffenberg (Microrate): what funds present seems transparent, but many questions remain about what it all really means. People in microfinance think that they are unique from a financial perspective. This is a great mistake —
Microfinance investing: perspective from a private banker
Joerg-Peter Hayn (Banque de Luxembourg): why does a private bank offer microfinance investments to its clients? Countries like Greece, Portugal or Spain have become high risk investments; countries like Bolivia or Argentina have become safe investments. Besides
Microfinance as a Public Good
Ann Miles (MasterCard Foundation): We see financial education as an important public good. Some of the objectives and opportunities for Financial Education that we have are: To what extent can financial education help protect clients and prevent
Donor Coordination: a Vehicle for Learning and Innovation
Renee Chao-Beroff (PAMIGA): Donor coordination is a constraint, but allows one to do larger, more innovative projects. But most importantly, it is a vehicle for sharing experiences and learning. Michael Knaute (Oxus/Convergences): Grants are still needed in
Responsible finance for direct investors
As Emilie Goodall from UNPRI outlines, there is a rapidly emerging and sophisticated landscape for RF for direct investors such as MIVs. They include endorsement – like SMART, MFT etc – and extend through tools for self-assessment,
Responsible Finance – the emerging landscape for retail providers and investors
Laura Foose, from SPTF, says there is confusion within the industry about the plethora of social performance/RF initiatives. But in effect, the landscape is not murky: there is rather an emerging landscape of tools suited to the