Greg Casagrande will speak at the 5th Annual Microfinance Conference at Columbia University on April 27

On Friday, April 27th from 9am-2pm, Greg Casagrande will be speaking at Columbia Business School's Microlumbia Fund's 5th Annual Microfinance Conference hosted at Columbia University.

Please see the preliminary schedule below.

For the last four years, Microlumbia has brought together leaders in the microfinance field for an academic discussion on the current state and future of the microfinance industry. This year, in collaboration with the Social Enterprise Program, they are proudly organizing their 5th Annual Conference.

More information and registration details are still to come on their website microlumbia.org

How is innovation paired with technological platforms helping broaden microfinance impact?

Microfinance is under a big wave of innovation. Technology is enabling the surge of mobile money, mobile financial services and branchless banking. What are the technological platforms that are enabling MFIs to increase their reach to a previously underserved population? How are the sector and its target beneficiaries better off with these innovative approaches?

Speakers
• Lenddo.com (TBD)
• Inventure.org (TBD)
• Efinlab.com (TBD)
• YellowPepper (TBD)

Moderator
• (TBD)

What are the frontier products being designed for microfinance clients and how are these improving the beneficiaries' financial situation?

Microfinance's previous "one size fits all" approach does not reflect very diverse needs of the underserved households. They are in need of financial services to build assets, manage risk and daily cash flows, and to take advantage of income generation opportunities. Currently, microfinance is their only option, but what other financial products can be available for poor households? Savings accounts and health insurance programs are just a few. Where is the innovation happening and where are MFIs being innovative to meet the needs of underserved households?

Speakers
• Camilla Nestor, Vice President of Microfinance Programs at Grameen Foundation
• Rajendra Poudyal, Administrative Manager of PlaNet Finance Nepal

Moderator
• (TBD)

Can an MFI operate as a For Profit and still achieve its social mission?

Should there be a cap on return on equity? Or should there not be a cap to allow the MFI to grow and increase its impact? If it should be for profit, what is the role of commercial equity investment to help improve governance and operations? What is the right balance, as microfinance increasingly depends on capital markets for equity funding and debt?

Speakers
• Lauren Burnhill, Director, One Planet Ventures
• Chuck Waterfield, Founder and Director, MFTransparency

Moderator
• (TBD)

Impact Investments – Why Americans Are Not Biting and What We can Do About It

Raising funds from U.S. investors for microfinance and other social impact businesses is a big challenge today. Outstanding projects with great potential to change the lives of underserved population segments are often short-lived due to lack of funding. How can we work together on different fronts to produce long-term solutions?

Speakers
• Roger Frank, formerly at Developing World Markets
• Christina Juhasz, Women’s World Banking
• Steve Zausner, formerly at FMA Capital Partners

Moderator
• Howard J. Finkelstein, Attorney at The Law Offices of Howard J. Finkelstein