Jacqueline Novogratz quits a prestigious banking job to pursue a career in development but discovers that achieving real impact is harder than she had imagined, especially as grant-funded non-profits often lack the skills and accountability to be really effective.

Kiva is an online platform that sources crowdfunding for low-income borrowers. By 2018 it has facilitated $1.1 billion in loans to 2.5 million borrowers worldwide.

The Mexican microfinance bank Compartamos Banco took the industry by surprise in 2007 with a successful IPO that valued the bank at more than US$ 1 billion.