scholarly journals Loan Officers Impede Graduation from Microfinance: Strategic Disclosure in a Large Microfinance Institution

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Natalia Rigol ◽  
Benjamin Roth
2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-67
Author(s):  
Yaw Sarfo ◽  
Oliver Musshoff ◽  
Ron Weber

Purpose With exclusive data from a commercial microfinance institution (MFI) in Madagascar, the purpose of this paper is to investigate if loan officer rotation (change of loan officer) has an effect on credit access (loan approval) in rural and in urban areas. The authors further analyze how the frequency of loan officer rotation affects credit access in rural and in urban areas. Design/methodology/approach The authors apply propensity score matching to compare credit access between loan applicants who experienced loan officer rotation and loan applicants who experienced no loan officer rotation in rural and in urban areas. Findings Results show that loan officer rotation has a positive and statistically significant effect on credit access. The authors observe further that loan officer rotation has a different effect on credit access in rural and in urban areas. Whilst rural loan applicants who experienced loan officer rotation are more likely to have credit access, urban loan applicants show no statistically significant effect of loan officer rotation on credit access. For the frequency effect on credit access, the authors observe that one loan officer rotation has a positive and statistically significant effect on credit access whereas results are mixed for two loan officer rotations. Research limitations/implications Even though the authors can show that loan officer rotation can improve credit access to loan applicants, especially in rural areas, the conditions in Madagascar are unique. Therefore, results need to be verified in other countries and institutional contexts. Practical implications From the perspective of MFI, the authors recommend that the management of MFI needs to provide better tools to loan officers to improve on the evaluation of agricultural loan products or standardize the assessment of agricultural loan products to improve on lending decisions. Further, if applicable, the authors recommend that MFI should consider using credit worthiness assessment procedures which rely less on loan officer’s judgment for loan evaluation, such as automated systems. From the perspective of loan applicants, the authors recommend that loan applicants should request for a change of loan officer if they experience successive loan applications rejection. Originality/value To the authors’ knowledge, this paper is the first to provide empirical evidence on the effect and frequency of loan officer rotation on credit access in Sub-Sahara Africa, and Madagascar, in particular.


2018 ◽  
pp. 114-124
Author(s):  
Dean Karlan ◽  
Jacob Appel

This chapter examines a study conducted by a microfinance institution (MFI) where they began developing educational supplements for their client base of poor women on the topics of infant/child health and business training. With tailored materials ready, the MFI launched the program in about half of its branches, using an “integrated model” in which loan officers delivered the trainings during their weekly repayment meetings. As it turned out, only a portion of the groups assigned to receive training were actually receiving it, and often at lower intensity than was intended. The underlying failure is that both problems—missed trainings and trainings given to the wrong groups—went unchecked for so long. Moreover, front-line staff members involved in the study faced competing priorities. If loan officers had been more aware of and invested in the research or managers more vigilant, they might have caught these challenges and addressed them before it was too late.


Author(s):  
Dean Karlan ◽  
Jacob Appel

This chapter examines a study conducted with the Peruvian microfinance institution Arariwa, which explores a number of questions regarding technology's potential and proper role as a development tool by implementing and testing a multimedia financial education program for clients. In this case, there are two major areas of failures: research setting and partner organization challenges. There were a few distinct instances of the former. First, the field sites presented challenges to the use of technology. Second, the intervention itself was deceptively complex. Finally, there was an element of bad timing in the flooding that caused repayment problems for some clients, thus adding stress to loan officers' already full plates. Indeed, competing priorities were a key partner organization challenge in this case. Loan officers were expected to deliver trainings without any lapses in, or relief from, their basic duties.


2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 35-50
Author(s):  
Zakiah Noer

This research is underlined by the existence of cooperative business activities which collect and distribute funds over its members, and also to its non-members. In order to avoid the violation of the provisions in Act No. 25 Year 1992 about Cooperatives, cooperative has established a microfinance institution (MFI) which called as Cooperative MFI. The establishment of microfinance institutions causes the legal consequences on several aspects because of the different regulations between Cooperative and MFI according Act No. 25 Year 1992 about Cooperatives and Act No.1 Year 2013 about Microfinance Institutions


Author(s):  
Thorsten Beck ◽  
Andre Guettler ◽  
Patrick Behr
Keyword(s):  

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander Rad ◽  
Peter Öhman ◽  
Darush Yazdanfar

2004 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 769-795 ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara A. Lougee ◽  
Carol A. Marquardt

This paper provides evidence on the characteristics of firms that include “pro forma” earnings information in their press releases, whether the usefulness of pro forma earnings to investors varies systematically with these characteristics, and whether the investor response to pro forma earnings is consistent with market efficiency or mispricing. Using a sample of 249 press releases from 1997–99, we find that firms with low GAAP earnings informativeness are more likely to disclose pro forma earnings than other firms. We also find that strategic considerations, measured using the direction of GAAP earnings surprises, are an important determinant of pro forma reporting. In addition, our examination of the relative and incremental information content of pro forma earnings shows that investors find pro forma earnings to be more useful when GAAP earnings informativeness is low or when strategic considerations are absent. Tests of the predictive ability of pro forma earnings for future profitability and returns are mixed, and we therefore cannot conclusively determine whether the investor reaction to pro forma earnings at the time of the press release is consistent with market efficiency or mispricing. The paper contributes to the growing literature on pro forma earnings and more generally to the literature on voluntary and strategic disclosure.


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