This edited collection discusses the evolution of microfinance and social business from the late medieval period to the modern era. The book fills a gap in financial history by exploring lesser-known, informal forms of credit granted to the poorest people, which have often not been recorded in writing.

The book highlights the particularly innovative forms of credit developed in Italy, but also includes global contributions on the presence of microfinance and social business across Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. This book illuminates for different countries and periods forms of financial assistance available for those not deemed as creditworthy – whether through the institution of the Monti di Pietà, an Italian credit instrument of the late Middle Ages, loans granted by shopkeepers, pawnbroking, or mutual aid distributed by lottery or religious institutions. The geographical diversity of the chapters enables comparative analyses to be drawn between different forms of credit and financial systems as they developed over a long period. The research presented offers new perspectives for contemporary microfinance, as well as reconstructing the experience of those living in poverty in a range of social, economic and religious contexts. The book will be of interest to a broad readership, including those working in financial, economic and social history.