The Super-Human Within!

16 Feb, 2012, 04.28AM IST, Krishnamurthy Subramanian - "The Economic Times" Commercial MFIs can make markets work for the poor (Also check the attached photo) Commercial microfinance institutions (MFIs) are an exemplification of making markets work for the poor. Are they indeed? A recent piece of research, comparing the lending performance of for-profit MFIs with not-for-profit MFIs, shows that though for-profit MFIs serve close to three-quarters of the market, the evidence does not seem to indicate that these MFIs lend indiscriminately when compared to their peers. Supporters and critics of microfinance agree that the demand for reliable financial services is huge. However, the role of fully-commercial, profit-seeking institutions in providing such microfinance loans remains controversial. Critics argue that MFIs are nothing but brute moneylenders, the very beast that microfinance was built to root out. Supporters, however, argue that several hundreds of th...

Term of the Day Dividend Discount Model Mathematical formula used generally by stockbrokers to determine the selling price of a firm's stock (shares). Based on the discounted value of the expected future dividend amounts, it is used usually to spot firms that are undervalued by the stockmarket but have potential for high returns.   Rgds.

It is not as simple as you may think!! Creditor: A  party  to whom  money  is owed.  Common   classifications  of a creditor include:  (1)   Secured : who has a  legal   right  to take a specific  property  of the  borrower  and  sell  it in case of a  default .  (2) Unsecured : who does not have any such right.  (3) Preferential or  senior : who takes  precedence  over other creditors in laying  claim  to a bankrupt  borrower's  property.  (4) Junior : whose claim is addressed after satisfying the  claims  of preferential or senior creditors. The corporate world many a times is not as simple as it seems on the 'face value'.....  oops..."Whats' Face Value ? " Wait and watch !! Rgds.

Memorandum of understanding (MOU):  A   document   that expresses   mutual  agreement  on an   issue   between two or more   parties . Memorandum of understanding are generally recognized as binding, even if no   legal   claim   could be based on the   rights   and   obligations   laid down in them. To be legally   operative , a memorandum of understanding must: (1) Identify the   contracting parties ,  (2) Spell out the subject matter of the   agreement   and its  objectives , (3) Summarize the essential   terms   of the agreement, and  (4) Must be signed by the contracting parties.  Also called   letter of intent. Used often in the financial dailies....as MOUs keep happening everyday between companies for technology &  knowledge sharing, buying & selling products or may be on working together on a project etc.  So, next time yo...

  Term of the Day Return on Investment (ROI) The earning ability of assets measured as the ratio of the net income ( profit less depreciation) to the average capital employed (or equity capital) in a company or project. Expressed usually as a percentage, return on investment is a measure of profitability that indicates whether or not a company is using its resources in an efficient manner.  For example, if the long-term return on investment of a company is lower than its "cost-of-capital"(i.e. interest), then the company will be better off by liquidating (selling off) its assets and depositing the proceeds (money/ cash) in a bank . Also called rate of return or yield.  ........... Dear Friends, You might be thinking ET Univ. was not around for a week.....actually S.G.B Amravati Univ. MBA students were busy with their exams, so I thought of giving them a break. More aspirants joining this blog is a happy feeling, more encouraging will be their participation ...

On 1/7/12, Mukta Mantri <mantrimukta@yahoo.in> wrote: > Just wanted to know if PENSION FUNDS are allowed to invest in stock markets? > if so, what %? Bcoz, being the old age benefit scheme, it should not be > investing in fluctuating markets as this would lead to uncertain returns and > may lead to capital erosion. Dear Mrs. Mantri Madam, First and foremost I must congratulate you for you are asking the FIRST question in ET Univ. and a very good one at that. Pension funds hold a major chunk of Institutional money....which is very important for the capital mkts. Now simply put maximizing returns with adequate safety is always the priority  for the Govt. Hence the funds do enter the capital mkts in parts. According to the New Pension Scheme 2004 guidelines contributor can choose from the investment options....Equity or Govt. Bonds or other forms of scheduled investments but if he has not chosen any, then the "Auto Option" is activated and depending ...

Term of the Day: In marketing , cannibalization is the decreased demand for an existing product that occurs when its vendor releases a new and similar product. For example, when Hewlett-Packard puts out a new printer, they realize that older printers will suffer some erosion of sales or market share; that erosion is referred to as cannibalization. Its meaning is similar to the original one, in which a person or animal eats the flesh of another member of its species.  Rgds. Ravi Sahu