A Brief History of MicrofinanceThe concept of microfinance is not new. The history of microfinance dates back to the early 1700s. By the early 1700s, a number of savings and loan groups were operating around the world. Some of them are “Susus of Ghana”, “Chit funds” in India, “Tandas” in Mexico, “Arisan” in Indonesia, “Cheetu” in Sri Lanka, etc. There were also other formal institutions that operated to lend to those who did not receive credit from commercial banks. In the early 1700s, author and nationalist Jonathan Swift started a microcredit organization in Ireland. Then, by the 1840s, there were around 300 funds spread across Ireland. In the 1800s, a number of institutions and agencies called the People's Bank, Credit Union, Savings and Loan Cooperation, emerged in Europe. Fredrich Wilhelm Raiffeisen and his followers proposed the concept of a credit union to provide credit to the poor and needy. This helped the poor as they did not need to depend on money lenders. By 1870, a number of formal savings and loan institutions developed in regions of Germany.,...