Once upon a time, there was microfinance at Alterfin… During Alterfin’s early years, the founding NGOs played an important role in making contact with partners. Hugo Couderé, Alterfin’s director for 18 years, recalls: ‘On my first trip to Peru, I was assisted by Freya Rondelez, the local head of 11.11.11. And in Ecuador, Dominique Morel, now Chair of the Board of Directors of Alterfin, but at that time a development worker at Coopibo (later Vredeseilanden), introduced me to the first local partners.’ Important role played by the NGOs The presence of the founding NGOs in Latin America explains