Equity capital flows into microfinance have been increasing for many years. Despite this growth, the vast majority of equity investments are still made in the form of private placements, as there are only three publicly traded microfinance institutions. The difficulty in accessing private data and the scarcity of publicly listed entities have limited the scope of the market research available to equity investors in microfinance institutions.
Drug policy fellow Gary Hale discusses the Jan. 31, 2012, Senate testimony of James R. Clapper, U.S. chief of national intelligence, in which he indicates that Mexico and violent events in that country are not specific threats to the United States.
In recent weeks, the government of Iran has threatened to shut down the Strait of Hormuz amid escalating tensions with the United States and its allies. Rice scholar Dagobert Brito discusses alternatives were the strait to be blocked.