microfinance

prashant — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 07:31:09 -0400

helping people like robin hood is wrong. governments tend to take from rich and have social programs to help poor, but in reality spend most of the funds in administration of such scheames. for social justice and upgradation of poor and needy, must be looked from their point of reference and what they really want and need. and how they can get those things in the future on their own. like environment problems today, most of the problems are created by us and those living simple lives are sufferers. we should reduce our consumptions of energy and resources and wastage thereof and let them find on their own their happiness and remove all restrictions that we may have imposed in our progress.

Microfinancing

Sterling — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 23:38:51 -0500

Derek, Thank you for this interview. I think that microfinancing will become increasingly more important in both the US and the world at large as a source of dynamic small businesses that could play a major role in innovation. Some of them may well become the international equivalent of the silicon valley entrepreneurs who started out in their garages or inexpensive work live lofts here in the U.S.

Four Questions for MicroPlace Founder Tracey Pettengill Turner

Derek Newberry — Fri, 16 Nov 2007 11:16:46 -0500

In case you haven't heard, there's this new thing called MicroPlace. It's a major turn in the life of the microfinance movement founded by entrepreneur (philanthropreneur?) Tracey Pettengill Turner. In between advancing her vision for solutions to poverty and running Ironman triathlons, Tracey takes a moment to discuss her new project with NextBillion.net.

I know you have probably heard enough of MicroPlace being compared to P2P lenders like a certain four-letter organization that starts with a "K." Still, I have to ask: How do you address the concern that the MicroPlace securities model creates one more intermediary between borrowers and their much needed microloans? What is the advantage of the securities model over P2P that outweighs this extra middleman?

Actually, there will be the same number of players in either model. As we grow,

MicroPlace will offer investments in diversified microfinance funds and in specific microfinance institutions. Investors can choose depending on how diversified a portfolio is desired. The real differences between our marketplace and P2P services lay elsewhere. In setting out to create MicroPlace, I spent a lot of time thinking about the emerging P2P businesses and came to the following conclusions:

- I think that it is about treating the working poor with dignity; not as problems, but as opportunities; not as charity cases, but as equals. Investing in the working poor (and earning a return on your investment like you would any other investment) honors them as the business people they are. At MicroPlace, we spent 2 years building the infrastructure-It's about investing. The magic of microfinance (by becoming a registered broker-dealer) necessary for everyday people to invest and earn a return.

- It's about scaling. How do we go from reaching 100 million people to reaching a billion people? We need out-of-the-box thinking that enables us to grow the industry in a step-function way. Access to capital is one part of the equation and MicroPlace enables people to invest as much as they like without limitation (of course within regulations).

-It's about sustainability. Microfinance won't succeed unless we build it in a sustainable way, which means everyone needs to earn a return from the investor in Indianapolis to the borrower in Bangladesh. Charity dollars are just not enough, even if every single charity dollar was given to microfinance organizations. We need people to start thinking about microfinance with their investment wallets, not their charitable wallets. Then we'll really see the power of microfinance!

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microfinance

Microfinancing

Four Questions for MicroPlace Founder Tracey Pettengill Turner