Microfinance Investment Funds: Where Wealth Creation Meets Poverty Reduction -- Microfinance Investment Funds: Where Wealth Creation Meets Poverty Reduction -- The Market for Investment in Microfinance -- Microfinance Investment Funds: Objectives, Players, Potential -- The Market for Microfinance Foreign Investment: Opportunities and Challenges -- Micro-bubble or Macro-immunity? Risk and Return in Microfinance: Lessons from Recent Crises in Latin America -- ProCredit Banks in Southeast Europe: Successful Public-Private Partnership in Microfinance -- Risk and Governance in Microfinance Investment -- Commercial Investment in Microfinance: A Class by Itself? -- Investing in Microfinance Investment Funds — Risk Perspectives of a Development Finance Institution -- The Management of Foreign Exchange Risk by Microfinance Institutions and Microfinance Investment Funds -- Governance, Transparency, and Accountability in the Microfinance Investment Fund Industry -- The Future of Investment in Microfinance -- Sustainability in Microfinance — Visions and Versions for Exit by Development Finance Institutions -- The European Fund for Southeast Europe: An Innovative Instrument for Political and Economic Stabilisation -- Mainstreaming Microfinance — Quo Vadis Microfinance Investments? -- Commercial Investment in Microfinance: Fears and Fulfillment -- Microfinance Investment Funds: Looking Ahead -- A Donor-Investor’s Vision for Enhancing the Future of Microfinance.

The surge in new investment funds - nearly 60 funds at last count - is an exciting sign that microfinance is attracting mainstream financial markets. Foreign investors bridge a crucial gap for MFIs and greenfield banks not yet able to attract deposits, debt or equity from local sources. Recognizing the ultimate goal of building those local financial markets that serve the poor, some foreign investors and funds are facilitating local intermediation with incentives like guarantees for local banks to lend to MFIs in local currency. Such contributions to local market building, combined with strengthening governance, increasing transparency and rigor make the new funds potentially very positive forces in microfinance. Elisabeth Littlefield, Director and CEO, CGAP Microfinance investment funds organised as mutual funds and structured finance products are bringing the vast resources of capital markets to the world of microfinance, which is about empowering poor people through provision of user-friendly financial services. These funds and structured products are superb means of producing a combination of financial and social returns. Individual and institutional investors are increasingly interested in the characteristics of microfinance loan portfolios. Progress in defining microfinance investments as an asset class is underway. In order to attract more commercial investors to microfinance, new financial instruments will have to be developed that satisfy commercial risk-return criteria while achieving the social benefits of microfinance activities. Jean-Philippe de Schrevel, Founder and Director, BlueOrchard Finance S.A.