On April 4, 2008, Microlumbia, Columbia Business School's first student-run microfinance fund, launched an educational forum to discuss the nuances of the microfinance industry, which has not only revolutionized the banking sector but also empowered many of the world's poorest individuals to launch sustainable microenterprises. Arturo Lopez Martin, a vice president in Credit Suisse's financial institutions group; Scott Budde, managing director of global social investing at financial services firm TIAA-CREF; and Brad Swanson '01, partner at Developing World Markets, an investment bank focused on sustainable development in emerging markets, sat down with an audience of more than 200 students and faculty members to highlight the industry's latest growth trends and areas for expansion.

"Everyone wants to invest in the microfinance sector, but the question they have is how," declared Arturo Lopez Martin of Credit Suisse. He noted that the latest trend by investors has been to securitize microfinance loans into credit default options (CDOs) as a profitable business model for the industry. He added, "We just need to figure out a way to do [microfinance] CDOs through local currency loans; major firms are beginning to develop the necessary currency programs to do this."