Think microfinance and you might think of small non-governmental organisations – subsidised, inefficient and anything but profitable. They lend money in picturesque settings to groups of poor women who are probably more in need of social assistance than financial services. And their financial health is only as strong as the donor money poured into them. But you would be wrong.
Microfinance has matured into one of the most successful and fastest-growing industries in the world. In Africa, its growth is probably second only to that of cell phone use.
