Meritxell Martinez

Can Postal Networks Advance Financial Inclusion in the Arab World?

As existing and trusted institutions with large branch networks reaching rural areas, Arab postal networks have the potential to be powerful tools in the fight for greater financial inclusion in the Arab World.

FOROMIC 2011 – Pura Vida!

This pura vida spirit could also be used to describe the status of financial inclusion in Latin America and the Caribbean, as the industry proactively pushes for product innovation to increase access and lower cost, while confronting challenges like overindebtedness and rural finance.

Public Funders in Branchless Banking

Public funders have been instrumental in promoting and developing the microfinance industry; close to 70% of cross border public funding going into microfinance comes from public sources. Currently, the financial inclusion world is abuzz with excitement about branchless banking and the potential of services like M-PESA in Kenya to dramatically reduce costs and increase access to financial services. Yet branchless banking is a new delivery channel mainly implemented by private stakeholders such as for-profit mobile network operators or commercial banks.

Emerging Lessons of Public Funders in Branchless Banking

This paper highlights emerging lessons from the public funders that have been engaged in branchless banking. The goal is to help other funders consider the role they might play in this area. Branchless banking offers the potential to fundamentally transform the way low-income clients can access financial services.

Measuring Changes in Client Lives through Microfinance

This Brief looks at the monitoring and assessment tools the microfinance industry uses to measure elements of social performance such as client poverty levels.