Personal Finance Ideas

Micro Finance - For Profit??

2010-09-26T18:41:26-04:00

Here is an account about an interesting debate between Muhammad Yunus, the Nobel Prize founder of Grameen Bank and Vikram Akula, founder of SKS Microfinance. I am personally on the side of Vikram, but I can see the big point that Yunus is trying to make though. Interesting Reading!!!

MicroFinance - Should you Profit from it?

2010-09-06T16:48:03-04:00

The huge sucess of the IPO of a microfinance company called SKS in India has triggered a wide spread debate around whether it is good to make a profit out of the poor. The argument goes that since almost all of microfinance users are poor, doesnt it make it easier to give them loans at lower rate, if there was no pressure to make a profit. This again goes back to the thought behind one of my previous posts Micro or P2P Lending – Investment or Charity. My Take Charity has been around for a long time. It are hundreds...

What you may not know about your Bank

2009-06-28T10:51:58-04:00

MSN Money has an interesting article on some things that you need to know about how banks make money off you. 10 things your bank won't tell you

The Underwear Index

2009-05-27T21:56:59-04:00

There are a number of unofficial so-called indexes that some experts use to check consumer confidence and spending behavior. One of the most common is the Lipstick Index, which measure the sale of Lipsticks. MSN Money has a article on a new index I have never heard about the Underwear Index. The article goes on to discuss some other non-common economic indicators. Interesting Read…

Spend Prudently

2009-05-05T12:00:21-04:00

I found this very interesting article at yahoo.. Want Peace of Mind? Spend Prudently “That will be my goal for the next 40 years: to spend prudently. If you are smart, it will be yours, too.”

Can your hobby make you wealthy

2009-04-28T11:47:00-04:00

Many of us have hobbies that involve collecting things. The most common is Stamps or Coins. But it is not restricted to these alone. Any item that has a collectable value can be a valid investment idea. Stamps and coins are the most common collectible investments that are pursued by millions of people all over the world. Do note there is rarely a definitive way value or trade in these items. For now most people use ebay /similar online auction sites or dealers for trading in these items. So valuations are very difficult to arrive at. There are a number...

Micro or P2P Lending Investment or Charity

2009-04-20T15:37:17-04:00

If you look at the current online opportunities available for either Micro or P2P lending, you see this positioned either are Charity (or do good thing) or as an investment. For example, if you see MicroPlace or RangDe, they position themselves to attract your good/giving side, rather than your risk and growth conscious investment side. If you see LendingClub or Prosper, then they kind of offer a high return investment option, which also allows you to help other people in need. So the obvious question is whether you look at this Asset Class as part of your Charity piece or...

Job Losses and Indian Reaction

2009-04-14T12:48:13-04:00

The Recession has had a major impact on the Indian IT industry. Since most of their revenues are from external sources, when the world sneezes, the Indian IT industry catches a cold. This sudden change in economic activity has given a bad blow to an industry that was trying to recover from a strong rupee, created by a booming economy in 2007. Over the last couple of days I have been seeing reports of companies like Infy and TCS laying off workers. This is something I would have expected in any recession and with the kind of job losses US...

Social Lending and Peer-to-Peer Lending

2009-04-12T19:40:51-04:00

Social Lending and P2P lending have gained a lot of focus lately. I have also written some posts on these before: Micro Lending - Invest for Good and Micro Lending in India. These two terms are usually used to mean the same thing, but I personally think these two are different and you need to have different focus when you invest in each of these. For me, Social Lending is when the money you lend goes towards helping people below the poverty line or people who will not get credit the normal way via banks etc. This scenario is mostly...

Bailouts and Bonuses

2009-04-01T11:12:43-04:00

There has been a lot of media attention around how the US bailout is being handled and the bonuses issue. People have been all out about how the bailout is bad and government intervention into businesses will result in all business closing down(Atleast according to some of the more vocal experts I see on TV :)). I found a post on Motely Fool that give a different perspective to the whole issue and I actually find some of those very logical (Though I do not agree with all the arguments posed, I do agree with quite a few. Actually more...