The Microfinance Information eXchange (MIX)

www.themix.org

Incorporated in June 2002 as a not-for-profit private organization, The MIX (Microfinance Information eXchange) aims to promote information exchange in the microfinance industry. 

Microfinance seeks to meet the financial needs of those populations excluded from formal financial services, especially the poor. Through small loans, savings, access to payment facilities, insurance or other financial services, microfinance institutions (MFIs) help the poor reduce their vulnerability to external shocks, increase their incomes and build businesses. The tangible benefits of increased income and economic security for the poor and their households are real and many—including better medical care, increased educational opportunities and greater food security.

The MIX intends to address one of the key challenges of the microfinance industry: the lack of reliable, comparable and publicly available information on the financial strength and performance of Microfinance Institutions (MFIs), which underpins the development of the market for microfinance services.

The MIX mission is to help build the microfinance market infrastructure by offering data sourcing, benchmarking and monitoring tools, as well as specialized information services.

The MIX’s three objectives are:

• Lead benchmarking activities and help increase standardized reporting among MFIs
• Improve and stimulate MFI performance and transparency
• Boost public and private investment in microfinance through increased information exchanges

To achieve its objectives, the MIX engages in three main activities:

• Standardize financial reporting across the entire industry 
• Provide a leading benchmarking service 
• Offer a reliable open information marketplace to facilitate the exchange of quality data

The MIX carries its activities through two main products: the MIX Market (MIX MARKET), a global professional web-based information service, and the MicroBanking Bulletin (MBB), an MFI benchmarking publication formerly published by the MicroBanking Standards Project, which has become the premier source of industry benchmarks.

MFIs that provide information to the MBB for individualized reports and confidential benchmarking studies will now have the option to publicly disclose this data on the MIX MARKET. In the same way, MFIs that fully disclose financial and outreach information on the MIX MARKET will become eligible for customized benchmarking services from the MBB.

Integrating the MBB and MIX MARKET within the MIX achieves economies of scale and facilitates disclosure of information through a one-stop data collection service. The MIX will retain the ability to confidentially manage the data of MFIs that wish to participate only in the MBB.

The MIX seeks to lead benchmarking, support standardization and transparency efforts and improve/stimulate MFI performance by:

• Providing a platform for financial information disclosure and giving greater visibility to MFIs committed to the highest level of disclosure 
• Providing benchmarking services that allow MFI managers to track their performance against that of their peers 
• Generating "de facto" performance standards that motivate MFI managers to improve their institution’s performance to attract resources for increasing their financial services offered to the poor 
• Reducing the research costs of funding and partnership opportunities for MFIs through providing a centralized information on sector actors  
• Enhancing the ability of MFIs to improve client services through greater efficiency 
• Offering tools and services to a wide range of sector actors, networks, supervisors, donors, and investors to promote improved monitoring and advisory services

The MIX seeks to boost public and private investment in microfinance through increased information exchanges by:

• Providing a reliable source of information on investment opportunities in microfinance, allowing donors and investors to make investments that match their needs 
• Educating investors and donors on microfinance standards  
• Reducing transactions costs to investors and donors 
• Offering a unified reporting service as an alternative to the multiple reporting requirements of individual funders  
• Giving greater visibility to the financial instruments of investors and donors and assisting a larger number of funders to market their services to MFIs 
• Boosting the flow of investments to MFIs, especially lesser-known, up-and-coming institutions

The MIX offers many benefits to its members, including:

• One-stop data collection service for MFIs and their funders. On-line registration and off-line data collection tools, such as specific questionnaires and the MBB Toolkit software, will be used to gather data. The MIX will also pursue partnerships with networks, donor agencies, and rating and evaluation firms to further facilitate data collection and verification.  
• Information Dissemination. Data on MFIs and investors will be disseminated through the MBB and, if MFIs choose to disclose their data publicly, on the MIX Market.  
• Specialized Information Services. The MIX will offer customized data analysis for MFI networks, apex organizations, and regulators, that will compare members or selected MFIs to peer groups, as well as provide direct feedback to MFIs on their comparative performance.  
• Dialogue on standardization. The MIX will actively work with other sector actors to build a common framework and vocabulary for measuring sustainability, outreach, and portfolio quality in microfinance.  
• Technical assistance and training. The MIX will train and support MFI networks, apex organizations, and central banks in the use of the MBB’s microfinance benchmarking and performance monitoring tools, such as the MBB Performance Monitoring and Benchmarking Toolkit software. 

The MIX is a partnership between CGAP (the Consultative Group to Assist the Poorest), the Citigroup Foundation, the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation, the Open Society Institute and the Rockdale Foundation and other private foundations. CGAP manages and provides strategic support to the MIX during its first three years.

The MIX headquarters:

1901 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Suite 307
Washington, DC 20006, U.S.A
Tel: 01 (202) 659 9094
Fax: 01 (202) 659 9095

The MIX Team
Adrian Gonzalez, MIX Researcher for CGAP Projects: agonzalez@themix.org
Audrey Linthorst, Sub-Saharan Africa Analyst: alinthorst@themix.org
Blaine Stephens, Director of Analysis: bstephens@themix.org
Joao 'Jack' Fonseca, Business Manager: jfonseca@themix.org
Ralitsa Sapundzhieva, Analyst, Eastern Europe and Central Asia: rsapudzhieva@themix.org
Elizabeth Downs, Marketing Communications Manager: edowns@themix.org
Peter Wall, Executive Director: pwall@themix.org
Scott Gaul, Product Development Manager: sgaul@themix.org

MIX América Latina:

The Latin American office is allowing the MIX to serve more clients in the region, providing greater benchmark personalization and responding more oportunely to the evolving needs of Latin American MFIs.

Jr. León Velarde 333
Lima 14
Perú
Tel: (51) 1 4719526 - 4725988
Fax: (51) 1 4716816

The MIX Team in Latin America
Matthew Gehrke, Latin America Regional Manager: mgehrke@themix.org
Renso Martinez, Latin America Analyst: rmartinez@themix.org
Maria Cecilia Rondon, Latin America Jr Analyst: mcrondon@themix.org

MIX Dakar:     

Microfinance Information Exchange, Inc.
c/o CAPAF                               
BP 23035, Dakar Sénégal
Cel : (221) 77 519 47 03
Tel/Fax: (221) 33 820 55 07

MIX Team in West Africa
Charles Cordier, West Africa Analyst: ccordier@themix.org



The MIX is governed by a Board of Directors composed of:

Xavier Reille, Managing Director and Secretary, Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP)
Martin Holtmann, IFC (on behalf of CGAP)
Asad Mahmood, Director, Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation
Neal DeLaurentis, Director and Treasurer, Open Society Institute
Robert Annibale, Director, Citigroup Foundation
Crystal Hutter, Omidyar Network

For more information on the MIX MARKET and the MBB, visit the websites at:

www.mixmarket.org
www.mixmbb.org