REVIEWS
"A refreshingly distinct path. Portfolios of the Poor . . . avoid[s] the big picture and zoom[s] in on the basics of daily poverty, exploring how poor families manage their money. . . . The diaries reveal a 'real, ongoing, and substantial demand' for better financial services, which poor families need to provide better health care and schooling for their children. . . . Rather than waiting for the world to debate and accept their ideas, these authors have taken them up on their own. In the war against global poverty, that feels like one small battle won." – Carlos Lozada, Washington Post
"The book's methodology and conclusions are fascinating." – Publishers Weekly
"A fascinating new book" – Nicholas D. Kristof, New York Times "On the Ground"
"The research provides evidence of the sophistication with which poor people think about their finances." – The Economist
"A good overview of how the world's poor intersect with financial institutions at the micro level." – Tyler Cowen, Marginal Revolution
"Ten years ago, the authors of this unusual study began collecting detailed yearlong 'financial diaries' from households in Bangladesh, India, and South Africa. . . . The diarists did things that might seem irrational--borrowing in order to save; paying interest on savings--but that made sense given their unpredictable incomes and limited options. While the authors do offer prescriptions for how to expand those options, it's their scrupulous attention to actual behavior that makes this book invaluable." – The New Yorker
IN THE NEWS
November 10, 2010, Nextbillion blog: Civilizing the ‘Wild West’ of Microfinance
October 13, 2010, World Bank Private Sector Development Blog
July 16, 2010, Huffington Post: New Financial Services for the Poor
June 9, 2010, The Hindu: Three opportunities for microfinance providers
May 13, 2010, Enlightened Economist: Saving Capitalism from the Capitalists
May 7, 2010, Thetimes-tribune.com: NYU economist explains how the worlds poor live on $2/day
May 4, 2010, Hindustan Times: Microfinance has lost its halo
April 7, 2010, Seattle Times: Microfinancing changes lives around the world — measurably
March 28, 2010, Financial Express: Loan waivers have not substantially damaged micro finance repayment regimen
March 26, 2010, Times of India: Public services often fail as they're designed from top down
March 25, 2010, Rajasthan Patrika Joint Savings for a better Life: reveals research
March 24, 2010, Speech by Princess Máxima of the Netherlands
March 18, 2010, Mail Today: Financial architect finds out how the poor live on $2
March 16, 2010, Bombay News.Net: Micro-finance guru unveils new vision for poor
March 1, 2010, Journal of Enterprise & Society Review
January 22, 2010, New Security Beat Video: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day
December 18, 2009, Science Magazine: Rich Financial Lives of Poor People
December 18, 2009, VoxEU Podcast: Portfolios of the Poor
December 15, 2009, Ethics and International Affairs: Book review
December 7, 2009, Boston Public Radio: Changing Micro Credit
December 2, 2009, New America Foundation: Wrong clients, or wrong products?
November 24, 2009, Knowledge @ Wharton: Microfinance’s Elusive Quest: Finding an Accurate Measure of Social Impact
October 21, 2009, Slate.com: Brother, Can You Lend a Dime?
October 5, 2009, CGAP.org: Does Microcredit Really Help Poor People? How? And how do we know?
October 2009, Economist.com: Jonathan Morduch on microcredit
September 27, 2009, Boston Globe: Measuring impact of microfinance
September 21, 2009, TIME Magazine: Why the World’s Poor Refuse Insurance
September 17, 2009, The Guardian: Books for review: Portfolios of the Poor
September 4, 2009, Wall Street Journal: Debunking Myths about the Poor and Financial Services
September 4, 2009, ChrisBlattman.com: The main problem with living on $2 a day…
September, 2009, Microfinance Insights: Interview with Jonathan Morduch and Orlanda Ruthven
September, 2009, Microfinance Insights: Book Review
September 2009, Zocalo: Living on Two Dollars a Day
August 29, 2009, Development Drums: Podcast on Portfolios of the Poor
August 25, 2009, The Economist: The debate over a “bubble” in microlending
August 21, 2009, Foreign Policy: What the World’s Poorest Can Teach Us About Money Management
July 27, 2009, ABC Radio: Living on $2 a Day
July 13, 2009, Fox Business News
July 13, 2009, BBC Today
July 10, 2009, Counterpunch: Diaries of the Distressed
July 8, 2009, NPR: Making a Life on $2 a Day
June 29, 2009, The New Yorker
June 24, 2009, Austrian Radio FM4 Reality Check (click to play audio)
June 23, 2009, Mint: Poor aren't lifeless bricks
June 21, 2009, Daily Kos: Living on $2 a Day: An Interview with Economist Jonathan Morduch
June 19, 2009, Washington Post: Schools, Weddings and Funerals on $2 a Day
June 9, 2009, WBUR: How to Live on $2 a Day
June 3, 2009, Guardian Business Podcast: General Motors, Microfinance and the Eurozone
May 22, 2009, The New American Foundation: "The Read Tragedy of Poverty": Insights from exploring portfolios of the poor
May 21, 2009, The Globe and Mail: Social Studies
May 18, 2009, New York Times, The Poor Have Financial Discipline
May 17, 2009, Boston Globe: Financial secrets of the world's poorest people
May 14, 2009, Economist: Smooth Operators
May 11, 2009, NextBillion.net: Financial Diaries of the Bottom Billion
May 8, 2009, Economist: Saving when you earn $2 a day.
Feb. 14, 2009, Financial Times: "Does Nobody Want to Take Money from the Poor?"
EARLY PRAISE
"Too often, conversations about the needs of the world's poor are based on assumptions and clichés. This important, carefully researched, and compelling book presents the facts about the poor and their relationship to finance."
Tim Harford, author of The Undercover Economist, and The Logic of Life
"The descriptions of how poor households manage their limited resources are exciting, raw, and novel, and I found myself unable to put the book down."
Edward Miguel, University of California, Berkeley and coauthor of Economic Gangsters