This paper discusses the Initial Public Offerings/listings of the four leading microfinance institutions that have carried out such transactions—Bank Rakyat Indonesia, BRAC Bank (Bangladesh), Banco Compartamos (Mexico) and Equity Bank (Kenya). The study attempts to determine the conditions under which a public offering or listing is suitable for a microfinance organization. It does this by analyzing the development of each of the four institutions and how that development influenced the decision to "go public." It also examines the purpose, structure and process of the offerings and listing in order to extract applicable lessons. The Council hopes that this research will be helpful to all that are involved in microfinance, especially investors and microfinance institutions seeking new entries to capital markets.