Founded in 1997, the Microfinance Centre (MFC) is an international grassroots network of over 100 microfinance institutions from across Europe and Asia. Its members are committed to microfinance (as providers of financial services, capital, or technical assistance) and include banks, non governmental organisations, social and commercial investors, development institutions, and international private volunteer organisations. MFC’s mission is to reduce poverty and contribute to human development potential through the promotion of a socially orientated and sustainable microfinance sector, by providing both financial and non-financial services to poor families and microentrepreneurs.

MFC has worked to bridge the gap between the unmet demand for microfinance services and what the sector currently offers, through the development of a range of financial institutions and the promotion of microfinance to policy makers, regulators, the banking sector, and investors across the region’s range of socio-economic conditions - from EU member states to the poorest nations in Central Asia. MFC’s asset building strategy focuses on developing a system for financial management skills and facilitating the development of a financial infrastructure to support low income people and microentrepreneurs.

MFC’s mission is to contribute to poverty reduction and human potential development by promoting a socially oriented and sustainable microfinance sector that provides adequate financial and non-financial services to a large number of poor families and microentrepreneurs. MFC meets its mission by offering:

• Financial literacy programme addressing the need for financial education among low-income people in the countries where MFC members operate

• Policy programme that provides opportunities for policy makers to address issues regarding the improvement of the policy, legal and regulatory environment for inclusive financial system development

• Research services that have helped to develop new models and tools for the region’s microfinance industry; these services have highlighted best practices to further and improve the knowledge pool about the region’s microfinance sector and its role in socio-economic development

• Capacity building programme that provides opportunities in strategic and operational development of MFIs. Examples include customised training courses, courses and consulting services in areas such as Risk Management, Delinquency Management for MFIs, Credit Scoring, Business Planning & Financial Modelling, Investment Readiness, Customer Service for MFIs and Social Performance Assessment Services

• Performance management programme that supports MFIs and networks in clarifying their social performance strategies, reporting on achieving social results, diagnosing and improving functional areas to align them with the principles of client protection and good management practice

• An annual forum for members (and other sector stakeholders) to network with each other.