Microfinance Institutions Performance. What Matters about the Interaction of Location and Legal Status?

The question this article seeks to answer is whether the relationship between legal status and performance is influenced by the geographical area to which the MFI belongs, as postulated in some work. To this end, we study a sample of 202 MFIs in the period 2001 to 2006. The results show that in Latin America and Eastern Europe, there is no significant difference in profitability between private companies and NGOs. In addition, the commercial approach to microfinance does not seem incompatible with the social mission of MFIs, irrespective of geographical location.