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prises, particularly in rural areas. The activities financed are dairy farming, weaving, cottage industries, sewing/ embroidery work, rural transportation etc.

In addition to financial services, companies that manufacture mobile phones, household goods (such as televisions, refrigerators, water purifiers and stoves), consumer products (soaps, shampoos and detergents) and farm equipment (including tractors!), have made an aggressive foray to service the rural areas. Some companies, such as Godrej, have even created innovative products such as a refrigerator without a compressor, and are selling it at a price point that has been arrived at after taking market feedback from potential customers. With the number of people under the MFIs' umbrella increasing exponentially, these companies are using MFIs as a channel to distribute their products. (B2B Trust, 2008)

In the play of economies of scale, returns are huge for the relatively small amounts that venture capitalists invest. Even at the height of the crisis, SKS Microfinance, one of the largest MFIs in India sealed a $75 million deal in November 2008 with Sandstone, a US hedge fund. Now as a part of its borrowing plan for next fiscal, SKS will be the first nonbanking financial company (NBFC) in India to issue commercial paper to raise short-term funds.

New Social Businesses using the same channels

Rural Employment: With new products entering the rural market, it has led to a high demand for rural sales agents for these products, with many companies appointing rural housewives to market products within a community for a sales commission. This has automatically led to a higher income generation for many rural families, and has also helped empower women to a large extent by providing them with an opportunity to earn income and have a sense of purpose.

Creation of Micro-Entrepreneurs: In addition to rural employment being created, MFIs are also encouraging the rural and urban poor to start an income-generating business, which is spawning a new breed of micro-entrepreneurs who earlier had no access to capital. For example, MFIs are lending money to rural entrepreneurs to buy a tractor, and rent it out to farmers on a pay-per-use basis.

Education: With the rural and urban poor having access to fairly regular income, a number of them who realize the value of providing education to their children, are now willing and able to spend on it. Although the fees gained through an individual student are very less, the potential numbers are very attractive from a business point of view, especially with technology-led education gaining popularity in villages.

Insurance: The benefit being that the cost of distribution comes down substantially which will further give comprehensive benefit to the customers as well as the insurers. Though at present both life insurance companies and non-life insurance companies are having the health insurance products, there lies a basic difference in that. While the non-life companies fully reimburse the cost incurred in case of the disease being covered by them, a life insurance company can only pay a lump sum amount in that case. Again, unlike life insurance companies. The non-life insurance companies can cover for a short period本论文由英语论文网提供整理，提供论文代写，英语论文代写，代写论文，代写英语论文，代写留学生论文，代写英文论文，留学生论文代写相关核心关键词搜索。