Banker to the Poor: Micro-Lending & the Battle Against World Poverty

Yunus received the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for Grameen, a bank created to serve the poor of Bengladesh. While teaching economics in 1983, he realized many aspiring businesses were unable to succeed because the only available credit was through moneylenders whose exorbitant rates ate up all potential profit.

The poor needed a bank which would loan amounts as small as $5 to cover the initial cost of supplies and allow them to make small frequent payments. Today Grameen loans $2.5 billion annually to more than two million families, with a 98% repayment rate. The bank has been used a model for helping people overcome poverty worldwide.

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