On a truly global level, but especially in developing regions, Microfinance is allowing creative people with limited financial means of their own to turn their business ideas into living realities. Microfinancing is therefore providing an excellent solution to the all-too-well-known problem of how someone who has an excellent idea for a business but lacks funding can act on that idea. In the past, such budding wealth creators often faced an insurmountable obstacle when they found themselves denied access to conventional business loans and lacked sufficient capital of their own. This problem affected not only these individuals and their families but also their entire communities, which were in these cases deprived of badly needed commercial growth and opportunity. This is where Microfinancing can step in and enable visions that would otherwise be lost to become thriving enterprises with widespread social and economic benefits.

How Microfinance underpins business creation

The stimulation and nurturing of more business enterprise in developing nations is urgent imperative in the world today. Quite simply, new business must be fostered in places that need it. The importance of engendering new business is the reason why Microfinancing has become such a pivotal concern. Do we understand the nature and functioning of Microfinancing, though? As a leading expert on the topic, Sharone Perlstein is an ideal guide to the world of Microfinance. Indeed, he is now at the forefront of a concerted effort to bring about greater levels of Microfinancing in Indonesia. We asked Mr Perlstein to lead us in a brief but insightful tour of this highly important approach to start-up fundraising.

Microfinancing and start-ups in developing countries

Would-be business founders who lack other sources of start-up funding can avail of microfinancing to get small loans at reasonable interest rates. These loans make it possible to cover all of the expenses that establishing a new enterprise entails. Naturally, the size of the loan offered in each case and the conditions attached to it will be determined in large measure by the location involved and by business conditions there. As Sharone Perlstein shrewdly observes, though, the smaller loan to which borrowers in more remote locations may be restricted will be offset by the considerably lower cost of doing business in such places.

Repayment percentages for microloans

Looking at this question from the lenders’ perspective, the welcome answer is that, compared to other sorts of widely available loans, microloans have an extremely high rate of full repayment. According to Sharone Perlstein’s own website, the percentage of microloans fully repaid is no less than 98.9%. In other words, available data confirms that Microfinance is highly effective and rewarding both for the start-up borrower and for the lender.

The evolving world of Microfinance

Our ever-changing technological environment naturally means that Microfinance is constantly adapting and improving in terms of both product range and quality of service. Among the changes taking place are additional services, including business insurance, that allow microlenders to support new enterprises even more thoroughly in their crucial early days. No wonder Sharone Perlstein’s enthusiasm for the fresh possibilities of Microfinance is so infectious. As we look ahead to see how the story unfolds, we have every reason to believe that Microfinance will be a key player in the emergence of new start-ups around the world.