Through these various initiatives, the banking sector has been able to directly contribute to the growth of sustainable and viable microfinance institutions. In our own little way, we have been able to make a positive transformational impact in the fight against poverty.
Translated into numbers, the banking system has so far provided a total of P2.9 billion microfinance loans to 485,136 micro-borrowers as of end-May 2004. All in all, we have 2 microfinance-oriented thrift banks, 4 microfinance-oriented rural banks and 115 rural and cooperative rural banks with some level of microfinance operations that finance the credit requirements of the entrepreneurial poor (e-poor).