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Microfinance Special

Financial Services for the 'Not-Bankable'

Microfinance links longterm development targets and economic thinking. Financial tools - such as small loans, affordable savings accounts and low-premium insurance policies - help poor households and small businesses that do not typically have access to financial services.

Allianz Interview

Avoiding the Poverty Trap

It is difficult to earn money with microinsurance. Michael Anthony explains why a commercial insurer like Allianz still offers insurance to the poor.

Microfinance Content

Top Microlenders

See 10 Leading Microfinance Providers

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What We Do

Making Microinsurance Work in Egypt

Allianz and its subsidiary AGF have teamed up with Planet Finance to provide microinsurance for poor people in a number of African countries.

Expert Interview

Microfinance: Only a Romantic Notion?

Aneel Karnani at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business says despite its growing popularity, microcredit is not the best way to help poor countries out of poverty.

Basic Facts

  • Microfinance is the provision of financial services to poor households.
  • The microfinance sector currently has an estimated total loan volume of 25 billion dollars.
  • Economists estimate that around 250 billion dollars would be needed to satisfy demand.
  • Loans usually start just below 100 dollars and can, over time, reach several times this amount.
  • In Asia, shares of female debtors are as high as 99%.

Quiz

Number of Policies

Which continent holds the biggest number of microcredit clients worldwide?

 

Backstory

Is Microcredit a Debt Trap?

With the expansion of microfinance, criticism is mounting that loans can become a debt trap. How real is the threat?