Top 10 microfinance institutions: A primer
Microfinance has been growing since Muhammad Yunus started the movement in the 1970s. Devex ranks the world’s 10 biggest microfinance institutions.
Although the practice can be traced back centuries, microfinance as we know it is commonly credited to the movement started by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus in the 1970s. And that movement continues to grow, as donors and civil society alike emphasize the importance of financial inclusion — or providing affordable financial services to the poor and disadvantaged sections of society — in the developing world. There are three sources of microfinance services: formal institutions like rural banks and cooperatives, semiformal ones such as nongovernmental organizations, and informal groups including money lenders. Women and small entrepreneurs benefit the most from microfinance. The biggest microfinance institution is BRAC in Bangladesh. The country’s Asian neighbors have also widely adopted the practice and play host to some of the world’s largest MFIs. Devex ranked the top 10 MFIs in terms of staff size. The below list also includes information on active borrowers and gross loan portfolio. Check out the Devex jobs board for career opportunities with these and other groups. 1. BRAC Headquarters: Dhaka, BangladeshFounded: 1972Staff size: 44,306Number of borrowers (2011): more than 5 millionGross loan portfolio: $646 million 2. Grameen Bank Headquarters: Dhaka, BangladeshFounded: 1983Staff size: 25,283Number of borrowers (2011): more than 8.3 millionGross loan portfolio: $939 million 3. SKS Microfinance Headquarters: Hyderabad, IndiaFounded: 1998Staff size: 22,733Number of borrowers (2011): more than 7.3 millionGross loan portfolio: $925 million 4. ASA Headquarters: Dhaka, BangladeshFounded: 1978Staff size: 21,298Number of borrowers (2011): more than 5 millionGross loan portfolio: $531 million 5. Compartamos Banco Headquarters: Mexico City, MexicoFounded: 1990Staff size: 13,298Number of borrowers (2011): 2.3 million Gross loan portfolio: $840 million 6. BASIX Headquarters: Hyderabad, IndiaFounded: 1996Staff size: 10,000Number of borrowers (2011): more than 1.5 million Gross loan portfolio: $281 million 7. Bandhan Headquarters: Kolkata, IndiaFounded: 2001Staff size: 9,754Number of borrowers (2011): 3.8 million Gross loan portfolio: $733 million 8. Vietnam Bank for Social Policies Headquarters: Hanoi, VietnamFounded: 2003Staff size: 8,900Number of borrowers (2011): 8.5 millionGross loan portfolio: $4.9 billion 9. Spandana Sphoorty Financial Ltd. Headquarters: Hyderabad, IndiaFounded: 1998Staff size: 8,328Number of borrowers (2011): nearly 4.2 million Gross loan portfolio: $778 million 10. ACLEDA Headquarters: Phnom Penh, CambodiaFounded: 1993Staff size: 7,340Number of borrowers (2011): 272,300Gross loan portfolio: $1 billion
Although the practice can be traced back centuries, microfinance as we know it is commonly credited to the movement started by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus in the 1970s. And that movement continues to grow, as donors and civil society alike emphasize the importance of financial inclusion — or providing affordable financial services to the poor and disadvantaged sections of society — in the developing world.
There are three sources of microfinance services: formal institutions like rural banks and cooperatives, semiformal ones such as nongovernmental organizations, and informal groups including money lenders. Women and small entrepreneurs benefit the most from microfinance.
The biggest microfinance institution is BRAC in Bangladesh. The country’s Asian neighbors have also widely adopted the practice and play host to some of the world’s largest MFIs.
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Eliza Villarino currently manages one of today’s leading publications on humanitarian aid, global health and international development, the weekly GDB. At Devex, she has helped grow a global newsroom, with talented journalists from major development hubs such as Washington, D.C, London and Brussels. She regularly writes about innovations in global development.
