Microfinance Information Exchange
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3
"Up" is the number of experts who agree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in the
field. "Down" is the number of experts who disagree that the nonprofit has had the most impact in field.
Headquarters Location: Washington, D.C.
Founded: 2002
Mission: MIX's three primary objectives are 1) Improve MFI performance and transparency 2) Boost public and private investment in microfinance through the increased exchange of information 3) Lead benchmarking activities.
Tags:
international, microfinance, information services, data, analysis, research, business information
Summary
Stories
Expert Reviews
Leadership
From the Nonprofit
Leadership
Marten Leijon.
Marten Leijon has many years of experience in leading advisory, information and research businesses, with a primary focus on financial services. Between 1999 and 2008, he led several global practices within the Corporate Executive Board (CEB). As Managing Director in the Financial Services practice, Marten was responsible for the development and growth of information products and executive networks in insurance,…
See full bio.
Financial Data
Overhead Ratio:
n/a
Total Revenue:
$4,802,842
From the Nonprofit
The nonprofit has not added any comments yet. If you are a representative of this nonprofit and would like to leave a comment, please email us at
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Contact Info
Address:
1901 Pennsylvania Ave. Suite 307
Washington, D.C. 20006, USA
Twitter:
Story:
Created by CGAP, MIX was incorporated in 2002 as an independent organization designed to improve transparency among microfinance institutions (MFIs), provide standardization, and help move the industry towards mainstream financial markets.
MIX’s core work centers on transparency. They collect and validate financial, operational, product, client, and social performance data from MFIs in all regions of the developing world, standardizing the data for comparability, and making the information public on MIX Market (www.mixmarket.org). They also supply basic business information on all actors in the industry — MFIs, funders and investors, networks and service providers.
By providing this critical information on a centralized platform, they offer microfinance practitioners, funders, policy makers, academia and others a way to gain a better understanding of the operations of MFIs, the challenges they may face, and patterns in MFI performance within and across regions and markets. The MFI data, benchmarks and trend lines that MIX provides give users a view into an industry in transition, growing towards maturity in some markets, while in others struggling for sustainability.
Finally, through MIX’s data collection and transparency efforts, they work to provide standardization to an industry that is highly fragmented by its very nature. Microfinance institutions are active in virtually every country throughout the developing world. Each country has its own policies and regulations and each region has its own challenges and needs regarding the provision of financial services to the poor. Standardization helps MFIs understand the parameters under which they are expected to operate, with the knowledge that by adhering to agreed upon guidelines, they are helping strengthen the industry. (Source: http://www.themix.org/sites/default/files/Annual%20Report%202009_0.pdf)
Expert Reviews of Microfinance Information Exchange
Evidence of Impact Summary:
In 2008, MIX collected information from 1225 microfinance institutions in 93 countries, which serve more than 66 million borrowers and 71 million savers. They had 10,038 registered members (2008), and 30,000 online visits/month (2008). The Financial Times, The Economist, Forbes magazine and Time magazine all cited MIX data.Organization Strengths Summary:
Microfinance experts believe that Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) does something essential that very few people have done: they provide a comprehensive resource on microfinance institutions globally. This resource includes establishing standards, improving transparencies, providing benchmarks, and coming up with ratings.See expert comments.
Areas for Improvement Summary:
At the same time, they can improve their social performance metrics, expand their scope by promoting their services beyond the industry, and increase the number of microfinance institutions in their network.See expert comments.
Expert Comments: Organization Strengths
Select the boxes to display the results according to expert type.
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Foundation Professionals (F)
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Researchers and Faculty (R)
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Nonprofit Senior Staff (N)
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Other (consultants, journalists, policy makers) (O)
Comprehensive Resource on Microfinance Institutions |
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They have excellent turnaround time to achieve significant results with consensus and support from multiple stakeholders. | ||
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O
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No organization has done more to disseminate information publicly, promote transparency, and generate best practices for the microfinance industry as a whole. | ||
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N
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They are providing comprehensive if imperfect data on the industry. | ||
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They provide information on all microfinance institutions. | ||
Provide Useful Information- Establish Standards, Improve Transparency, and Provide Benchmarks |
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This organization is outstanding because of its work in building market information, increasing transparency of information on microfinance markets, and mainstreaming innovative performance monitoring. | ||
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They do something essential that nobody else does. | ||
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They are the only online platform with financial and outreach data on the microfinance sector. | ||
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They come up with ratings for the microfinance sector. | ||
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They help measure impact. | ||
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They provide information, benchmarking, and transparency. | ||
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They stand alone in providing consistent and useful information. | ||
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They synthesize performance data. | ||
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They establish standards and improve transparency. | ||
Provide a Public Service |
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R
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They disseminate the information nicely as a public service. | ||
Expert Comments: Areas for Improvement
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Foundation Professionals (F)
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Researchers and Faculty (R)
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Nonprofit Senior Staff (N)
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Other (consultants, journalists, policy makers) (O)
Refine and Update Information |
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N
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They should continue to refine the data inputs and reports. | ||
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They should get more current information and confirm the accuracy of their information. | ||
Provide Further Support to Microfinance Institutions |
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They should provide further support and training to networks and microfinance institutions on transparency and benchmarking. | ||
Promote Activities beyond Industry |
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They should create an Association of Rating Organizations. | ||
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They should increase their awareness beyond industry professionals. | ||
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O
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They should promote their activities to institutions not commonly defined as “microfinance.” | ||
Improve Social Performance Metrics |
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N
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They should add social performance metrics. | ||
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They should improve social performance data collection and reporting. | ||
Leadership
Marten Leijon
Executive Director
Executive Director
From the Nonprofit
The nonprofit has not added any comments yet. If you are a representative of this nonprofit and would like to leave a comment, please email us at
feedback@myphilanthropedia.org
with your request.