Microfinance as the best way of tackling poverty is under attack. It has been accused of failing to help the poor, of treating its clients badly, of charging high interest rates and of encouraging poor people to take on excessive debt burdens. The authors examine these issues, and find that...

The portfolios of the poor -- The daily grind -- Dealing with risk -- Building blocks : creating usefully large sums -- The price of money -- Rethinking microfinance : the Grameen II diaries -- Better portfolios

Nearly forty percent of humanity lives on an average of two dollars a day or less. If you've never had to survive on an income so small, it is hard to imagine. How would you put food on the table, afford a home, and educate your children? How would you handle emergencies and old age? Every day,...

- The emergence of neo-banks in India and the UK reflects the increasing demand for digital financial services. The dawn of the digital age in the financial sector has paved the way for increased alliances between incumbents and ‘fintech’ organizations.- Neo-banks, digital-only banks that...

This paper examines the impact of audit and non-audit fees on firms’ ability to access finance by reducing their capital constraints. Unlike previous studies, which examined this phenomenon in developed economies, this paper focuses on one of the largest, albeit developing, economies in the...