Recent Blogs
Blog
The Graduation Approach: What’s Next on the Research Agenda?
Results from an in-depth impact study on the Graduation Approach were strong. As Graduation programs are scaled up in India, Ethiopia, Pakistan, and elsewhere, what should researchers study next?Blog
The Graduation Approach: Mapping a Path to Scale
We have much more to understand and learn about the impact and potential of the Graduation Approach. At CGAP, we are particularly interested in elements of the program related to financial services.Blog
Digital Finance and Illiteracy: Four Critical Risks
Illiteracy is still a global problem, and most financial services are not designed for illiterate customers. The Helix Institute is working with financial service providers to help develop products and services that can work better for those who cannot read.Blog
How Absa Bank Empowered its Customers through Games
A case study from Absa Bank in South Africa demonstrates how games can help empower their customers and encourage them to use mobile financial services.Blog
The Road to Financial Inclusion: Solid Progress, Big Challenges
It is not poverty that generates financial exclusion, but rather the opposite: financial exclusion generates poverty.Blog
M-Pawa 1 Year on: Mobile Banking Perceptions, Use in Tanzania
A year after the launch of M-Pawa, how are Tanzania's farmers using the savings and loan service? What improvements could lead to more uptake?Blog
Insights on Inactivity of Mobile Money Accounts in Côte d’Ivoire
Côte d’Ivoire is one of the most vibrant digital financial services markets in West Africa. But why do so many customers remain inactive?Blog
5 Ways to Improve Customer Experience for the Poor
CGAP offers five insights on improving customer experience for the poor, in ways that are game-changing, yet profitable.Blog
The Five Most Dramatic Changes in 20 Years of Financial Inclusion
Since CGAP was formed 20 years ago, there have been dramatic changes in the progress of financial inclusion.Blog
Can a Good Customer Experience for the Poor Benefit Business?
Is it important that financial service providers (FSPs) provide a good customer experience when serving poor, underbanked customers? Evidence says "yes," but this is often overlooked by FSPs.Blog
From Microfinance to Financial Inclusion: Reflections on 20 Years
2015 marks a good year for financial inclusion and provides an opportunity for reflecting on what has happened in the sector in the past two decades.Blog
Cashless Nigeria: Facilitating the Transition to Digital Payments
The Better than Cash Alliance released two studies covering Nigeria's journey from cash to digital payments. Digital payments are passing a tipping point in Nigeria's corporate sector, with 61% of salaries from large companies paid electronically.Blog
Putting Mystery Shopping to the Test in the Philippines
Typically, mystery shopping is associated with consumer market research. However, financial regulators - such as the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas - are also using it as a tool to check if financial institutions are complying with regulations.Blog
Minimize Risk to Drive Smallholder Adoption of DFS
For the world’s smallholder families, risk is an ever-present part of daily life. Minimizing the risk of trying digital financial services was one of the key takeaways from CGAP’s four smallholder-focused human-centered design projects.Blog
Small Business Finance and Financial Inclusion in Latin America
Limited acceptance of digital payments and high fees associated with using such services are two obstacles to greater financial inclusion in Latin American countries. Can these issues be solved at the retailer level, rather than the individual level?Blog
Mystery Shopping: A Different Way to “Listen to the Customer”
Mystery shopping is another way of "listening to the customer" and understanding what their experience at a financial institution is really like.Blog
Why Women Self-Help Group Members Make for Good Bank Agents
Pilot projects that train women self-help group members as bank agents in rural areas in India are proving to be promising.Blog
Just How Open is Safaricom’s Open API?
In September 2015, Safaricom announced that it had opened its M-Pesa platform to allow developers to create next-generation solutions on the platform. But just how open is the platform?Blog
Banking on Change: Enabling Women’s Access to Financial Services
Women face barriers in proving their identity, traveling to a bank, opening an account, and building a credit score that all contribute to the gender gap in access to financial services.Blog