Alex Counts

Microfinance lending, the practice of making small loans to individuals who would otherwise not qualify for traditional loans, has been a proven method of nurturing entrepreneurship in developing countries. As a college student, Alex read about the work of Noble Prize winning Dr. Muhammad Yunus and his efforts in microfinance. Eager to contribute, he moved to Bangladesh soon after graduating and worked under Dr. Yunus to learn the intricacies of microfinance lending. In 1997, Alex branched off and founded the Grameen Foundation in order to expand microfinance efforts globally.

Alex speaks to Jessica Harris about how he turned a $6000 seed investment into a leading international microfinance organization, from scratch.