Debt investment funds represent the largest part of MIVs, i.e. the value of eight microfinance funds ranked under this category account for 57%¹ of the total microfinance portfolio. This category of funds comprises commercial fixed-income investment funds and registered mutual funds. The main difference between both categories is that registered mutual funds are mainly registered in Luxembourg (thought they may be managed in Switzerland) and have to comply with strict regulations as well as the most reliable and standardized reporting among all MIVs. Among the leading organizations are, for example, BlueOrchard and ResponsAbility. The Commercial fixed-income investment funds characteristic is that they invest in senior to high-growth MFIs with an average deal size of US$ 2,5 million, whereas registered mutual funds average deal size is of US $ 1 million. Geographic focus for both categories is in Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Their average return was 6.3% in 2007¹.

• Commercial fixed-income investment funds

• Registered mutual funds

Source: The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) Focus Note Nbr. 44: Foreign Capital Investment in Microfinance

¹Symbiotics SA Infromation, Consulting and Services report: La Suisse, un pôle de l’investissement en micro finance