Internal determinants of the performance of microfinance institutions in Ivory Coast: a panel data analysis

This article aims to identify and analyse the internal determinants of the financial and social performance of microfinance institutions (MFI) in Ivory Coast. For this purpose, we have collected a database of twenty-two Ivorian MFI with financial data covering the period 2011-2014. Our results highlight the positive influence of the legal form on the financial performance of MFI. Specifically, we show that MFI with the status of "public limited companies" have higher profit margins than mutual and cooperative savings and credit institutions (IMCEC). On the other hand, the prudential ratios, the maturity of the MFI, the size of customer deposits and the number of points of service appear to have no influence on the financial performance of the MFI; social performance, the maturity of the MFI, the number of points of service and the geographical coverage of the MFI play a positive role in its attractiveness to customers. Lastly, the capitalisation ratio, geographical coverage and deposit size play a major role in the size evolution of the loans granted to customers