Microfinance for Profit. The Debate Continues,
May 16, 2008
Even with all the goodwill it means, microfinance models have garnered their share of criticism. Compartamos, meaning “Let’s share” in Spanish, has put its founders Carlos Danel and Carlos Labarthe in the centre of a great debate that aims to understand how far a microfinance model can go towards becoming a business. This biggest microlender of Mexico came into focus after it became one of the country’s most profitable banks that had started as a non-profit organisation. After the bank went public last year, it faced flak from the likes of Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus who claim that Compartamos generates profits for its investors, and not for its borrowers.
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