Recent Blogs
Blog
Inclusive Growth vs. Household Finance: A False Choice
What’s better for inclusive economic growth: expanding access to financial services among individuals or businesses? Emerging evidence suggests they’re both critical.Blog
Regulator’s Friend or Foe? Cloud Computing in Financial Inclusion
When regulated and supervised properly, cloud computing can be a boon to financial institutions trying to reach underserved customers. Here are some tips for regulators and supervisors in emerging markets.Blog
Has Fintech Closed the Credit Gap? Not by a Long Shot
If funders want to spur job creation and economic growth, they’ll need to close the credit gap for small businesses in emerging markets. But to do this, they can’t depend solely on fintech.Blog
Cheaper Remittances: How Malaysia and the Philippines Paved the Way
Globally, people pay an average fee of 6.9 percent to send money to family and others abroad. In one of Asia’s largest remittance corridors, between Malaysia and the Philippines, the average fee is only 3.7 percent. Smart policies have played an important role in bringing prices down.Blog
Algorithm Bias in Credit Scoring: What’s Inside the Black Box?
Computers can make faster, better, and less biased lending decisions than humans, but only if human bias hasn’t crept into their algorithms.Blog
Sports Betting: Highway to Hell or On-Ramp to Digital Finance?
Sports betting is pervasive in Africa. What impact is it having on how youth use digital financial services?Blog
3 Principles for Funders of Youth Financial Inclusion
How can donors promote financial inclusion in a way that creates jobs for youth? Here are three guiding principles, based on the Mastercard Foundation's experience in Africa.Blog
Reaching the Next Generation of Financial Services Customers in Africa
A growing body of evidence shows young people's potential as users of financial services in Africa.Blog
Mapping a Pathway to Improved Well-Being for Young People
What are the links between financial services and young people's educational and job opportunities? Here are three insights.Blog
How Do Kenyans Really Use M-PESA?
Transaction data shows mobile money agents are more like petrol stations than barber shops, with few customers showing loyalty to particular agents.Blog
6 Strategies to Promote Digital Financial Product Adoption Among Youth
Here are six insights about how to make financial services appeal to young people, coming out of a digital savings pilot in Tanzania.Blog
Running a Sandbox May Cost Over $1M, Survey Shows
CGAP and the World Bank surveyed regulators across 30 countries to find out how and why they’re using regulatory sandboxes and what it takes to run one.Blog
The Role of Cash In/Cash Out in Digital Financial Inclusion
Getting cash into and out of the digital system remains one of the main barriers to financial inclusion in emerging markets — even in markets where digital financial services are on the rise.Blog
Social Norms and Women’s Financial Inclusion: The Role of Providers
Financial services providers are a part of the societies in which they operate, and their decisions can bolster gender norms that restrict or expand women’s access to financial services.Blog
Turning Remittances into Savings for Nepal’s Migrant Families
Remittances amount to 28 percent of Nepal’s GDP. Digital financial services that better meet young women’s needs could help migrant families put away more in savings.Blog
Youth in Agriculture: A New Generation Leverages Technology
Digital financial services can help young people see a future in agriculture.Blog
Beyond Regulations: What’s Driving Mobile Money in Côte d’Ivoire?
Regulations helped spur the recent growth of mobile money in Côte d'Ivoire, but there's more to the story.Blog
Expanding the Horizons of Pay-as-You-Go Solar
As PAYGo solar companies seek to expand into new and challenging markets, they will need to lower their costs and improve repayment rates.Blog
Regulations Drive Success of Digital Finance in Côte d’Ivoire
The year 2015 marked a turning point for financial inclusion in Côte d'Ivoire, as nonbanks were allowed to issue e-money. Since then, mobile money has driven big increases in account ownership.Blog