Two NGOs, Comité d’Echange, de Réflexion et sur les Systèmes d’Epargne-Crédit (CERISE) of France and the US-based Social Performance Task Force (SPTF), recently announced the Client Protection Pathway, a free service through which financial service providers (FSPs) may get support and recognition for improving the ways they serve clients. The first step in the pathway is to agree that “Our organization has reviewed the Client Protection Standards, and we commit to using them to improve our practices over time.” The second step is for the microfinance institution or other FSP to assess its operations and make incremental improvements, which can be supported through the Pathway’s documentation, webinars and referrals to consultants. The third step is to share the organization’s successes, which can be done at https://sptf.info/client-protection/fsps-committed-to-client-protection. This site includes a link to the list of FSPs that are participating, a group numbering 19 organizations as of October 2021.
SPTF, founded in 2005, works to improve the social performance management (SPM) of microfinance institutions. SPM refers to the systems that organizations use to achieve their social goals, such as improving clients’ well-being. SPM strategies include defining and monitoring social goals, developing client-centric products and services, treating clients and employees responsibly, and balancing social and financial performance. For the year 2019, the NGO reported expenditures of USD 2.3 million.
Founded in France in 1998, CERISE is a nonprofit that aims to support “ethical and responsible finance” in order to drive social and economic development. The organization works to help stakeholders in “inclusive finance, social business and impact-investing” achieve social impact by providing them with advisory services, portfolio analyses, benchmarking reports and social audits. In 2019, CERISE performed 107 audits under SPI4 (Social Performance Indicators 4), the fourth version of a tool for assessing the social performance of FSPs. CERISE has six staff members.
Sources and Additional Resources
CERISE announcement of the Client Protection Pathway
https://cerise-spm.org/en/blog/launching-the-client-protection-pathway/
SPTF description of the Client Protection Pathway
https://sptf.info/client-protection/the-client-protection-pathway
MicroCapital story on the closing of the Smart Campaign
https://www.microcapital.org/microcapital-brief-smart-campaign-at-accion-to-close-sptf-cerise-to-preserve-its-client-protection-standards-online-resources/
SPTF financials 2019
https://apps.irs.gov/app/eos/
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