Women-led businesses financed by Mexican fintech Konfío recorded a substantially higher average growth rate than the broader group of businesses on its lending platform, according to research cited by the company’s chief executive officer at the 2026 World Bank Group and International Monetary Fund (IMF) Annual Meetings.
David Arana said a study conducted alongside IDB Invest found that businesses using Konfío’s platform grew by an average of about 19.4% over roughly a year and a half to two years. For women-led businesses, the average growth rate rose to 42%, he said.
The findings offer evidence of the potential economic returns from extending credit to businesses that traditional lenders may overlook, although the figures presented during the panel do not establish that lending alone caused the difference in growth.
Arana said 84% of the businesses historically served by Konfío were receiving their first business loan. The company uses digital information, sales data and electronic invoicing to assess small businesses that may lack the physical collateral, banking relationships or established credit histories typically required by conventional lenders.
The results shift the focus of small-business lending from financial inclusion alone to the potential contribution of credit to business expansion and economic development.
“If we can not only view SME lending as something important or a priority for financial inclusion, but also for economic development,” Arana said, describing the broader significance of the findings.
Women-led businesses remain an important part of the financing debate. During the same panel, Kell Jay Lim, head of financial services at Grab, said women and people with disabilities who borrow through the platform have higher repayment rates, making them lower-risk borrowers for the company. He did not provide specific repayment figures.
The remarks challenge the assumption that borrowers who lack conventional financial records or collateral are necessarily poor credit risks. Digital platforms can collect information about sales, transactions and commercial activity that may provide a more detailed picture of a business than traditional credit histories alone.
Konfío has grown into Mexico’s third-largest small-business lending player by number of borrowers, compared with Mexican banks, Arana said. Its experience reflects the expanding role of fintech companies in serving firms that have historically had limited access to formal credit.
However, the ability to reach more borrowers does not automatically guarantee sustained business growth. The panel discussion highlighted the importance of reliable data, stable sources of funding and regulation that allows fintechs and established financial institutions to work together.
Arana said the broader challenge is to combine fintechs’ underwriting capabilities and distribution networks with stable funding from trusted financial institutions. Making data more accessible and addressing regulatory barriers would help expand those models, he said.
The discussion took place as the World Bank Group promotes ways to expand financing for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which are central to employment and economic activity in developing economies.
For women-led firms, the Konfío findings suggest that improving access to business credit may have significant commercial benefits. But wider replication of the results will depend on the availability of comparable evidence across markets, the quality of lending data and whether businesses can continue to obtain financing as they grow.
