Indonesia’s MBK Ventura tops MIX 2009 ranking of 100 microfinance institutions

By Nagesh Narayana
Microfinance Focus, March 4, 2010: The MIX Global 100 ranks MBK Ventura from Indonesia as the top performing MFI in 2009 for the second year in a row, in large part due to the MFI’s highly efficient operations. The 2009 edition of the MIX Global 100, now in its third year, surveyed 955 institutions from nearly 100 countries.

The Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX), a business information and data services provider for the global microfinance industry, released their annual rankings of microfinance institutions (MFIs) on Wednesday. The MIX Global 100 ranks MFIs based on outreach, efficiency and transparency. This year’s rankings are based on financial data from 2008, the most recent data available, said the report.

“This year’s ranking shows a lot of movement and activity in the microfinance market throughout the developing world, with 34 MFIs entering the rankings for the first time,” stated Blaine Stephens, COO and director of analysis for MIX.
“We are seeing the stress of changing operational conditions due to the economic slowdown reflected in these rankings, as MFIs struggle to maintain efficient operations and keep their portfolios at risk low.”

“MBK Ventura excelled at minimizing costs to clients by maintaining low operating costs, low risk, and narrow profit margins, effectively reducing the total price that its customers pay for access to credit,” stated Blaine Stephens.

Of the total 58 institutions that moved up the ranking, 34 entered the top 100 for the first time and 23 of the 34 improved their position significantly because of better transparency.

While India continues to be a driving force behind this showing, Bangladeshi MFIs also had a strong turn-out, with two top-ranked MFIs growing by an average 50% in a market where the largest institutions did not grow at all. Indian MFIs doubled in numbers from 10 to 20 in this year’s top 100, when the growth of MFIs in other markets was much slower.

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