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 Dr. Muhammad Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for the work he started 30 years ago when he created the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh. The first bank in the world to give loans to destitute populations on the basis of trust rather than solvency guarantees or security, the Grameen bank has revolutionized lending practices in Third World nations by allowing populations previously excluded from lending services access to capital to start and grow businesses. Now with operations around the globe, Grameen Bank opened it’s first outpost in the U.S. last January in Queens, New York. The New York Times City Room blog was there, and reported that Yunus was greeted like a rock star by the community: “It was like being with Mick Jagger, without the security detail”.
And in spite of long held assumptions about the credit worthiness of low income people, 99.5% of Grameen Bank loans are repaid. A recent CNBC segment on Muhammad Yunus and Grameen Bank said: “It seems that the poor are more likely to honor their debts, than the rich.” “The problem with capitalism, Yunus told CNBC’s Fast Money, is its distinction between companies pursuing profit and charities pursuing good...Despite an explosive growth rate and opportunities to do business with the wealthy, Grameen remains true to its mission; it still only gives loans to the poor, and mostly women. ‘We saw that money going to women brought much greater impact (on households),’ Yunus explains to the traders. ‘It’s not the repayment, it’s not the risk, it’s the impact.’”
Next month on April 19, the 92Y will host Muhammad Yunus in a talk titled, ‘A More Humane Capitalism’, where Muhammad will talk about his new book, Creating a World Without Poverty, and answer questions such as how can the power of the free market be used to solve the problems of poverty, hunger, and inequality.
Upcoming Business Talks:
Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook COO: Apr 7
David Winters on Global Realities: Apr 14
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