Microfinance in Australia: Current Realities and Future Possibilities

Publication Date: 2003
Published by: Brisbane, Australia: University of Queensland
Document Type: Paper

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What is the future of microfinance in Australia?

This report provides an overview of the current realities of, and future possibilities for, microfinance in Australia - where microfinance is increasingly being referred to as a mechanism for addressing poverty and social exclusion, particularly that relating to financial exclusion.

Although microfinance in Australia is in its infancy, there are some very interesting practice examples of microfinance emerging in community organisations, financial institutions such as credit unions and friendly societies, and welfare services around the country. A number of the models are explored further in this report. These include examples of:

• credit provision
• savings initiatives
• insurance schemes

• more focussed research
• greater levels of support for experimentation with new models and approaches
• further exploration of current regulatory constraints and possible reforms