The benefit to whole families was much more reliable when the borrower was a woman. In spite of enormous tensions in borrowers' marriages in a culture where women have few economic rights, today, nearly all borrowers are women. Scattered around the world are thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of small success stories like Yunus's program was ten years ago. The particular significance of the Grameen Bank is that it is one of a handful that has been able to grow. It uses a franchise-like system.
New staff serve a lengthy apprenticeship.
Branches borrow from the headquarters at 12 percent and lend at 20 percent. With that 8 percent spread they have to become profitable, which takes on average seven years. With these requirements and the capital accumulated through borrowers' required savings, the main bank's only need for concessional funds is to fuel expansion. Now Yunus wants to see his program spread around the world. There are special conditions in Bangladesh, he thinks, that make the idea applicable there and not elsewhere.