Provide general elements of financial intermediation with particular regard to ethical finance in Italy and in the world. Provide an overview of the interconnections between finance development and sustainability issues. Understanding the mechanisms that determine non-bankability and therefore microfinance methods. Give a general picture of the changes that will take place in finance and social and sustainable finance
Teaching Methods
lessons
experts seminars
exercises
Type of Assessment
for attending students is possible to have a written exam last day of lessons.
otherwise oral examination
Course program
Ethical Finance
• Basic elements of Finance management and ethical finance: “savings’ social function”, non financial performance and reporting, loans and correlated risks, risk management, reputational issues.
• A short review of socially oriented finance in history: development of financial tools, ethical dilemmas.
• Finance and global challenges: which connections, international rules, tax heavens
• Definitions of ethical sustainable and responsible finance
Banking
• Banking on values: a consumers and institutional approach
• Methods for evaluation of environmental and social impacts.
• Embedding ethics and finance in the heart of banking: governance, policy, process, controls managing, operation.
• Participatory issues and cooperative model in banking
• Definition of ethical Banking in Italian banking law (art 111 bis TUB)
• Examples and figures of ethical/sustainable banks.
• International initiatives and networks
Microfinance
• Unbankables: who where why, credit as a Human right?, Relational (non economic) guarantees and their values.
• Microfinance institutions (MFI): different kinds of MFI, MFI’s methodology, services offered, loans design
• MFI economic sustainability: costs and incomes management, credit quality, performances indicators and measurements, stakeholders engagement
• MFI information sources: international rating, certifications, web database
• Microcredit in Europe: differences respect to emerging countries, costs, role of guarantees funds, public support.
• International network on microcredit, microcredit investment fund
New developments on social finance
• Eu policy on social economy (FEI, EU programs)
• Social impacts bonds
• Complementary currency: general theory and examples (Sardex Italy, WIR Switzerland)
• Microcredit 2.0 on the web
• P2P lending
• Payment system
Suggested readings
slides on moodle
optional:
L.Becchetti, Il microcredito, ed mulino (2008) Ledgerwood J. (1998), Microfinance Handbook: An Institutional Financial Perspective, Sustainable Banking with the Poor, World Bank, Washington D.C. cap III, V, VI, VIII