The first two lessons take a historical look at the changing attitudes to intervention in rural financial markets and the rise to prominence of microfinance. They introduce many of the key issues and controversies that concern development agencies. The third lesson looks closely at the type of financial services that people need and emphasizes the crucial nature of savings. This leads on to consideration of the legal nature of financial service providers and issues of regulation and supervision, and finally to the question of whether commercial banks can get involved in providing micro financial services.