Krong Pailin, Cambodia. In the rainy season a 1-2 km trip can take much of the day.
Rural microcredit rates have risen sharply since the dawn of the microfinance revolution. Most modern rates range from 12-60% annually, with unsubsidized rates below 12% being extremely rare. The alternative for most poor borrowers is either no credit at all, or much higher informal rates.
At the dawn of the microfinance revolution, during the 1860s-90s, the Raiffeisen banks of rural Germany charged 5½% (per annum, declining balance) on small farmers’ loans, (more…)
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