Symbiotics - MIVS

Over the past decade, microfinance investments in emerging and frontier markets, have become an asset class of their own.
Plus, assets under management have nearly quintupled, creating a huge capital flow in the emerging markets to help improve the lives of low and middle income households.
More and more investors and people are interested in microfinance investments. Specific ratings are for example lacking to help them.
Where can they turn to learn more about them?
Over the past ten years, Symbiotics Microfinance Investment Vehicles Survey has captured and analyzed data from more than 150 microfinance funds.
This year’s survey represents 95% of funds in terms of volume worldwide, and provides information about portfolio growth, risk and diversification, return, outreach and funds’ commitment to ESG practices.
The market size in terms of investment volumes was 11 billion U.S. Dollars, managed by 56 asset managers worldwide using a variety of instruments including debt, equity and guarantees.
This represents a bump up in investments volume of 6.4% compared to 2014 and an annual compounded growth of 20% of microfinance fund investments in 10 years.
These investments are spread throughout the emerging and frontier markets.
In 2015, the fastest growing region was South Asia, and the largest investment volumes went to India, closely followed by Cambodia and Ecuador.
Symbiotics MIV survey does not only share invaluable information but it also provides some good news…
The number of low and middle income households benefitting from access to financial services keeps growing year after year with an estimated number of 24 million people.
In terms of outreach, the funds’ investments are benefitting a majority of women and people living in rural areas. And a growing proportion of clients is making voluntary savings deposits.
Want to know more? The full survey results and benchmarks are now available online by registering on Symbiotics’ intelligence platform, syminvest.com, and on our website