Microfinance has existed in various forms in different countries at different points of time. The Self Help Group movement in India since 1992 and the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh since 1975 employing different, simplified procedures and systems have pioneered the growth of microfinance all over the world. This movement has been instrumental in empowering women, ensuring infrequent savings, affordable loans for the poor and has enabled the financing of poor people without exploiting them. The shift in emphasis from micro-deposits to micro-credit and then onto micro-enterprises, has ensured that...