This topic discusses savings-led microfinance techniques, as pioneered by [Marcia Odell|http://givingspace.org/marcia.htm]. We are calling it "nano" because it: *reduces the amount of capital required to start a group, *is savings-based, rather than debt-based *reduces the need for intermediaries to manage the interest *keeps the capital in the village, along with its control [Oxfam America|http://www.oxfamamerica.org/]'s Jeffrey Ashe and Vinod Parmeshwar are also implementing nano finance projects, experimenting with oral bookkeeping techniques to reduce even the paper and pencil costs of the community savings process.