www.mixmarket.org
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THE MIX (Microfinance Information eXchange) MARKET is a global microfinance marketplace providing information on over 100 Microfinance Institutions, more than 35 public and private Funds that invest in Microfinance, MFI Networks, Raters/External Evaluators and Advisory Firms, Governmental and Regulatory Agencies. The MIX Market seeks to build credible market infrastructure to link Microfinance Institutions worldwide with Investors and Donors and promote investment and information flows.
The MIX intends to address one of the key challenges of the microfinance industry: the lack of reliable, comparable and publicly available information on the financial strength and performance of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), which underpins the development of the market for microfinance services.
The MIX mission is to help build the microfinance market infrastructure by offering data sourcing, benchmarking and monitoring tools, as well as specialized information services.
The MIX?s three objectives are to:
??Lead benchmarking activities and help increase standardized reporting among MFIs;
??Improve and stimulate MFI performance and transparency;
??Boost public and private investment in microfinance through increased information exchanges;
To achieve its objectives, the MIX engages in three main activities:
??Standardize financial reporting across the entire industry;
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??Provide a leading benchmarking service;
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??Offer a reliable open information marketplace to facilitate the exchange of quality data;
The MIX carries its activities through two main products: the MIX Market (MIX MARKET), a global professional web-based information service, and the
MicroBanking Bulletin (MBB)
www.microfinancegateway.org
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CGAP (Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest) is a consortium of 29 bilateral and multilateral donor agencies who support microfinance. Its mission is to improve the capacity of microfinance institutions to deliver high-quality financial services to the poor, including the very poor, on a sustainable basis. CGAP is dedicated to moving the industry to the mass scale required to serve millions of poor people worldwide.
The Microfinance Gateway is a public forum for the microfinance industry at large that offers a wealth of tailored services for microfinance professionals, including resource centers on specific topics in microfinance, a searchable library of electronic documents, a consultant database, a jobs listing service, and specialized discussion groups. The Gateway?s resources constitute the most comprehensive source of information on microfinance on the World Wide Web, featuring 2,500 online documents, over 500 listings of MFIs and nearly 200 consultant curricula vitae.
www.microbanking-mbb.org
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The MicroBanking Standards Project is based in Washington DC and funded by the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest (CGAP). The primary purpose of the project is to help MFI managers and board members understand their performance in comparison with their peers. Secondary objectives include establishing industry benchmarks/performance standards, enhancing the transparency of financial reporting, and improving the performance of microfinance institutions. By collecting financial and portfolio data on leading microfinance institutions (MFIs), organizing the data into peer groups, and reporting this information, the project is building infrastructure that is critical to the development of the microfinance industry. The MicroBanking Bulletin is now published twice a year, April and October, and is widely disseminated. The project also supports microfinance networks through customized services.
www.planetfinance.org
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PlaNet Finance is an international NGO whose aim is to develop and professionalize the microfinance sector by drawing on the potential of the Internet and new technology. Initially funded by donations and contributions by banks and private sponsors, their funding base has expanded to include high-tech companies, public and international institutions, as well as the general public. PlaNet Finance believes that microfinance plays an essential role in the fight against poverty because it is a means of increasing revenues, creating employment and diminishing dependency on creditors and exporting countries.
www.uncdf.org
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The United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), through its microfinance programmes, supports a variety of initiatives that facilitate the provision of financial services to the poor. These initiatives include a variety of activities such as investments in microfinance institutions (MFIs) and the MicroStart Programme with UNDP country offices; technical advisory services such as MFI appraisals and project design; a supportive learning agenda; and best practice dissemination and capacity building.
www.mip.org
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USAID launched its Microentreprise initiative in 1994 and gave microentreprise development high priority within the Agency?s programming. USAID?s office for Microentreprise Development established the Microentreprise Innovation Project (MIP) as a vehicle for microfinance development activities. The Microentreprise Innovation Project supports technical and financial assistance, research and training on best practices in microentreprise development and finance.
www.swwb.org/icm
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Women?s World Banking (WWB) is a global network of over 50 microfinance institutions and banks in 34 countries that provide microlending services to over 10 million poor women and men and savings services to millions more. Together, WWB network members aim to change the way the world works by connecting poor women to economic and financial systems locally and globally. WWB has been a leader in building a global consensus on performance standards for the microfinance industry, and in shaping policies and financial systems for the world?s poor majority. By helping network members get what they need to succeed, and by helping shape financial systems and industry standards, WWB seeks to reduce the gap between the hundreds of millions of poor women who require financial services, and those who currently receive microloans.
MicroSave-Africa is a unique project that promotes the development of savings and other more client-responsive financial services among microfinance institutions (MFIs). To achieve this goal, the project has successfully combined:
The field-level research entails extensive interviews with poor people (including microfinance clients) to better understand their financial behaviour and risk profile; while the action research involves helping MFIs to better listen to clients and design appropriate financial products based on better market information. Both research activities complement each other and directly feed into the curriculum development and dissemination efforts.
History of Network
