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Banco da Familia Awarded Mix Market Certificate for Transparency

We are delighted to announce that Banco da Familia, WWB’s network member in Brazil, has been awarded the Mix Market Certificate for Transparency for 2006. Under the leadership of founding President Isabel Baggio and Vice President Marcio Oliveira, Banco da Familia has served primarily poor women entrepreneurs in Brazil since 1999, and currently has over 6000 clients, 62% of whom are women. With the award of the 2006 Certificate of Transparency, Mix Market gives an objective confirmation of the quality of the Banco da Familia’s operations. This will bring Banco da Familia more recognition and visibility in the microfinance sector, and allow the organization to find more diverse sources of funding.

Mix Market, a global microfinance information platform recognized throughout the industry, helps microfinance institutions (MFIs) to compare their financial and outreach performance with that of their peers, and works to attract public and commercially-oriented investors to microfinance by promoting financial transparency, accountability, and increased disclosure standards. Before awarding its Certificate for Transparency to Banco da Familia, Mix Market compared the organization with leading MFIs in the market, especially Latin America, evaluating benchmarks such as finances, governance structure, portfolio quality, operational effectiveness, number of clients, number of loan agents, and ratings of other rating agencies.

“This is a milestone for Banco da Familia,” says Ms. Baggio, “because it was very difficult to reach this point with the organization. This award is a sign that there is opportunity for us to grow, even in the difficult microfinance climate in Brazil. The award will give investors and other partners confidence in the stability of our organization, helping us to secure the funding we need to move to the next stage.”