Microfinance > MFI

• Mónica Adelina Pescarmona (President)
• Ricardo Cabrera (CFO)
• Gustavo Berlanga (Loan officer)

The foundation was created in Mendoza in 1998 by Silvia Pescarmona. After participating to an international microfinance congress in New York, all the foundation working methodology has been completely changed with the help and assistance of Grameen Bangladesh. Since this change, the growth of the foundation is high and regular. Two new branches have been opened in 2007 in the provinces of Corrientes and Mar de Plata. Though the foundation is still of a modest size because of the lack of refinancement. Its status does not allow to collect its customers savings.

Even if women are a majority in the total number of the customers, they are not specially preferred. The foundation does not allow microloans to the people who have a project and want to start a new business. It was proposed in the past and faced too many failures.

Grameen Mendoza does not offer other products than microloans. Nevertheless, it offers to its customers a technical assistance, internships and workshops in order to help them for managing their microbusiness.

As it cannot satisfy all the demand, no promotion is made. It is only done by the loan officers on the field. These loan officers (16 in total) go to the home and at the address of the microbusiness to evaluate the capacity to reimburse of the microentrepreneur. At the same time, a form about the social situation of the microentrepreneur is filled (how the children are educated, …). The file goes through a credit committee before being accepted. The reimbursement plan is established with the microentrepreneur.

Grameen Mendoza does not deal with cash: the amount of the microloan is given to the customer by check, and the microentrepreneur reimburse its loan by check or in a partner bank allowed to receive it. Usually, the amortization of the loan is twice monthly, even if it is possible to do it weekly or monthly.

During the microloan, the loan officers go to visit the customers at their place at least once a month. If they have trouble to reimburse the loan, the loan officers search for understanding the reasons of the troubles and try to find a solution with the customer, like rescheduling the reimbursement of the microloan for example.

It is possible to reimburse the microloan by anticipation.

Individual loans represent 80% of the activity, the rest takes the form of groups of 5 people maximum.

Grameen Mendoza has trouble to find refinancing funds. It refinance itself with local banks and international funds.

Any form of microbusiness is represented.