Microfinance Brokers

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Example

Sander Van Damme:

"MicroPlace: A Broker for Microfinance

MicroPlace is a very different story from the others; it is part of Paypal Inc. rather than an independent entity and it does not offer the possibility to select specific borrowers. It is a broker-dealer that collects funds and on-lends them to local MFIs that use the funds as they wish. So rather than selecting Nkuyata and Sanou you select the parameters that you like (Green loans or fair trade? 2% or 3% return? Quick repayment or 3 years from now?, etc.).

These lead you to microfinance institutions that offer such projects. However, since you did not select specific borrowers, you cannot get feedback on their performances either; although the website features some stories of successful entrepreneurs, these are generic and thus do not necessarily reflect the impact your money has had. MicroPlace is therefore the least peer to peer of the social lending platforms." (https://www.zidisha.org/editables/news_docs/Louvain.pdf)