Expanded Markets and Products Mark New Face of Microfinance, ADB Annual Report Says

Monday, April 18, 2005

The microfinance industry is changing from a sector heavily dependent on external assistance to commercial operations run by some of the region’s most influential financial institutions, according to the Annual Report 2004 of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) released today.
Expanded product lines and broader markets are now hallmarks of the industry, the Report says, in a special theme chapter on “The Changing Face of the Microfinance Industry: Building Financial Systems for the Poor.”
“The walls between the formal financial sector and microfinance are gradually breaking down with the increasing involvement of conventional, private commercial banks, and alternative financial institutions,” the Report says.
Press release found here.