MICROCAPITAL EVENT: The Financial Crisis and Microfinance: Experience, Insights, and Implications

NOVEMBER 18 TO 20, 2008, INTERNET CONFERENCE HOSTED BY CGAP

The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) will host a three-day virtual conference entitled “The Financial Crisis and Microfinance: Experience, Insights, and Implications.”  CGAP hopes that virtual participants will share their experiences and insights on the financial crisis and its effects on microfinance and the global poor, and that the discussion will involve all types of microfinance players—microfinance institutions (MFIs), clients, and donors and investors. 

The program is divided into two sessions: (1) Microfinance Institutions and Their Clients; and (2) Donors and Investors.  The first session takes place from 3:00am EST on Tuesday until 9:00am EST on Wednesday, while the second session takes place from 9:00am EST on Wednesday until 11:00am EST on Thursday.  During the first session, participants will discuss the microfinance industry’s level of exposure and vulnerability to the credit crunch after hearing from microfinance practitioners who have worked in both emerging and developed economies.  CGAP hopes the discussion will delve into crisis’ effect on MFIs’ operations—their growth plans, their costs and risks, and the qualities of their portfolios.  In the second session, participants will explore how donors and investors are responding to the financial crisis and will discuss MFI funding sources, risk assessments of various markets and institutions, how the revision of risk has affected asset pricing, the extent to which donors and investors are having difficulty raising new capital, and novel ways for donors and investors to mitigate industry risks and seize new business opportunities. 

Please visit the website to register for the conference.  While the conference is free, participants are encouraged to fill out a short online survey beforehand to help guide the discussion.  For more information, please see the CGAP website.

 

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