Financial Institutions' Portfolio Quality, Growth and Financial Performance After COVID-19

This Slide Deck is a supplement to the official CGAP Blog "In a Post-Pandemic World, How Healthy Are MFIs?"(Mar 2024).

The blog evaluates the impact of the pandemic on various regions and MFI types. It concludes that if financial services for lower-income people are to be maintained, and at reasonable rates, in the post-COVID era, then continued support from governments, donors, and DFIs is not just essential but a shared responsibility. MFIs themselves will also need to focus on digital innovations that can help reduce operating costs, facilitating the scaling up that can help counteract the effects of the pandemic on their portfolios.

The information in this detailed analysis, from which the blog draws, showcases the remarkable resilience of the microfinance sector across multiple regions. It highlights key performance indicators for MFIs during and since the COVID-19 pandemic, demonstrating their ability to adapt and overcome challenges. It focuses on Portfolio Quality (inter alia, PAR 30 and 90 rates, Restructured Portfolio Ratios and Write-Off Ratios), it assesses Growth in Assets, adjusted for inflation with a lens on sub-Saharan Africa, and it addresses Financial Performance (including Portfolio Yield, Return on Assets and a detailed assessment to establish the number of MFI institutions in Acceptable, Risk and High Risk Solvency classes, breaking this information down by region). The analysis provides key insights into the way in which MFIs in different parts of the world have not only weathered the storm of the pandemic but have also adjusted and grown as the pandemic has receded.

Disclaimer

This work was commissioned by CGAP and funded in whole or in part by CGAP as part of its effort to monitor the state of the microfinance sector. Unlike CGAP’s official publications, the viewpoints and conclusions expressed are those of the authors and they may or may not reflect the views of CGAP staff.