The Microfinance Council of the Philippines, Inc. (MCPI) evolved out of a USAID-funded project entitled “Developing Standards for Microfinance Project” (DSMP) that started in mid-1996 and continued until the end of 1999. The microfinance institutions (MFIs) that were part of the DSMP decided to form an association or network and the resulting organization, MCPI, was registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a non-stock corporation in June 1999.
As of December 2021, MCPI has grown to comprise 66 institutions including 55 regular members and 11 support institutions. Its regular members include 33 microfinance non-government organizations, 12 banks, 7 cooperatives, 1 finance company, and 2 regional networks. It is estimated that MCPI members account between 80-90% of the total active outreach of the microfinance sector in the Philippines.