Compartamos Initial Public Offering: A Case Study on Microfinance Interest Rates and Profits
On April 20, 2007, Banco Compartamos, a microfinance institution (MFI) that was launched in 1990 and originally funded by grants from various sources, including CGAP, completed a landmark initial public offering (IPO) of its stock. The IPO was 13 times oversubscribed and considered a huge success by any financial market standard.1 Pent-up demand caused the share price—representing 30 percent ownership in the bank—to surge 22 percent in the first day […]