Pre Conference Workshops: January 25, 2010

  • Workshop A: Microfinance 101: Small Loans, Big Impact: A Pre-Conference Primer on Microfinance
  • Workshop B: Overcoming Foreign Exchange Risk

10:45 Registration (Lunch will be served)

11:00 - 2:00 Workshop A: Microfinance 101: Small Loans, Big Impact: A Pre-Conference Primer on Microfinance

Introduction to Microfinance

  • Building a foundation with a history of informal savings
  • Dissecting major components of microfinance’s ecosystem
  • Overcoming challenges in microfinance: gender, impact, alternatives

Designing a Structure that Works—Group Lending and Variations

  • Analyzing microfinance’s unique structure
  • Exploring rates of return and the cost of money
  • Comparing and contrasting individual vs. group lending

Overcoming Management Challenges at MFIs—Compensation and Structure

  • Overcoming scale issues
  • Addressing the issue of mission drift
  • Realizing techniques for realistic sustainability

Conquering Issues in the Microfinance Landscape

  • Evaluating country contexts and variations
  • Gaining liquidity for investors
  • Effectively applying entrepreneurship

Offering Other Microfinance Products—Beyond Credit

  • Introducing savings products
  • Understanding the importance of education
  • Mitigating risk with insurance

Investing in MFIs

  • Measuring impact
  • Selecting an investment vehicle and process
  • Assessing Sustainability

Workshop Leader:

Guy Stuart
Professor
HARVARD KENNEDY SCHOOL

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2:15 Registration (Coffee and refreshments will be served)

2:30 - 5:30 Workshop B: Overcoming Foreign Exchange Risk

One of the biggest challenges in microfinance and perhaps the biggest risk to investors and MFIs alike is the foreign exchange risk. At the same time, investing in emerging market debt is becoming increasingly attractive to US investors. Join us for this three hour workshop and hear 2 FX risk experts present and share their best practice strategies for overcoming this risk

What will be covered:

  • Overview of current emerging markets debt products such as swaps, forwards and futures
  • Looking into hedging strategies – two different approaches to hedging by Minlam fund and Distributed Capital
  • A case study of what happens in an unhedged MFI if the FX risk is not adequately managed
  • Determining appropriate levels of foreign exchange exposure and borrowing in local currencies versus hard currency
  • Comparing investor strategies based on objective, type of fund and level of diversification and its correlated level of volatility
  • Discussing the outlook on the dollar – is dollars still the future or are you willing to add local currency to your portfolio
  • Case study of local currency exposure - looking into active management of a diversified set of specifically selected deals that take naked currency exposure
  • Deciding on prices and the interest rate levels in cross border deals
  • Evaluating strategies for setting prices including local market information and macro-economic research
  • Emerging trends and how to ensure you can benefit from investing in emerging markets

Workshop Leader:

Zac Pessin
President & CEO
DISTRIBUTED CAPITAL GROUP

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