| Abstract: |
The paper looks at the growth and commercialization of microfinance in India.
It starts out be looking at how the commercial microfinance has evolved
internationally by discussing two specific examples and then moves on to
examine the specifics cases of four large microfinance institutions in India.
The basic argument of the paper is that most of the early microfinance in
India happened through donor and philanthropic funds. These funds came in to
not-for-profit organizations. However as the activities scaled up, it was
imperative to move to a commercial format. The paper examines the growth
imperatives and the transformation processes. The paper then proceeds to look
at the implications of the transformation process and its effect on the
personal enrichment of the promoters of MFI as well as the governance
implications. Basically it questions the moral and ethical fabric on which
some to the large microfinance institutions are built. It ends by answering a
set of questions that may emanate out of this discussion. |