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What Do Clients Really Want from Insurance?

Some say that insurance does not have a natural ‘fit’ with financial behaviors of low-income households, given that benefits are deferred in time and limited to just those few who claim. But, the shocks experienced by those lacking good risk-management tools have such devastating effects on livelihoods, that it is important not to abandon insurance as a development tool only because the ‘fit’ is not obvious.

Tracking Mobile Money Use in Haiti

We all remember the devastating 7.0 earthquake that struck Haiti in January 2010 reportedly destroying about one-third of the country’s bricks-and-mortar bank branches, limiting Haitians’ ability to send and receive money transfers, cash checks, or simply access much-needed cash resources.

Beyond Payments or Just Different Payments?

Everyone is always talking about trying to move the branchless banking industry beyond just payments. Those of us concerned with accelerating “real financial inclusion” long to see credit, savings and insurance products pushed over new delivery channels. But is it possible that there’s still work to be done within the payments space itself, just diversifying a bit beyond simple P2P transfers?

A Quick Journey Through the History of Usury

Microfinance is at a critical juncture, and as we reflect on how we got here, should ask: What makes us different from what was previously done through the ages, since coins were first established as a medium of exchange? And how do we maintain what’s different and avoid slipping into the well-worn paths that emerge when we examine the history of usury?

Paying Attention to the Financial Needs of Youth

Despite growing interest in youth financial services as a means to financial inclusion, until recently there has been precious little publicly available information on what youth in developing countries want from financial institutions.

The Role Public Funders Can Play in Branchless Banking

Given the current momentum, is there a meaningful role that public funders can play without crowding out private investment?

Savings Groups

More than 5 million poor people around the world are members of Savings Groups that provide essential services to help manage their daily lives.

What Can We Learn From Selling Soap?

This post includes a detailed presentation of CGAP’s analysis of 23 firms from banking, microfinance, mobile, fast moving consumer goods, and Silicon Valley. It also describes the key features of three Product Labs which will be established by CGAP’s bank, telco and other partners.

Segmenting the “Bottom of the Pyramid” in Mexico

Reaching the poor with a range of useful, convenient, and affordable financial services is challenging for all the reasons we know. In the context of Mexico, access has increased significantly in the past few years (nearly 60% of all households), and changes in regulation enabling correspondent banking are likely to bring the access barrier down even further.

Faster Horses or Better Insights?

Customers often can’t or won’t tell you what they want, so you must work to dig down to what they really need. Valuable services not only meet a deeply-felt need, they tackle a poorly met need.

Customers – Especially Women – Drive Mobile Money

Tanzania is one of the fastest growing mobile money markets in the world. Today mobile telephone penetration is 49% according to Wireless Intelligence as of Q3 2011. There are four active mobile money businesses, the largest of which is Vodacom’s M-PESA which has over 2 million active users.

Microcredit in a Changing Region

The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has been facing a series of unprecedented events in 2011, resulting in a great deal of change after over three decades of stagnant political dictatorship, uneven economic growth, and increased poverty.

The Case for Product Innovation in Branchless Banking

CGAP counted 22 branchless banking services with more than 1 million registered users; we also counted more than 70 others which have not reached that threshold (as of Q1 2011). That’s about a 1 in 4 “hit rate”.

Commercialization of Microfinance

The topic of commercialization has been hotly debated, largely because it raises fundamental questions about whether the dual social and financial missions of microfinance can coexist.

Pakistan: a Laboratory for Innovation in Branchless Banking

We are excited about the developments that we’re seeing in branchless banking in Pakistan, which have led us to call it a “laboratory” for innovation.

Technologies for Financial Inclusion: Looking to the Past

In microfinance, technology clearly has great potential to improve service at a lower cost to more customers. But in the area of financial inclusion, there still have not been great leaps in the use of technologies similar to what has happened in everyday life.

Overview of the G2P Payments Sector in India

We often write on this blog about the potential to link government-to-person (G2P) payments to financial services. We also closely follow branchless banking developments in India and have recently shared our take on the market. So imagine our excitement when we can talk about both together!

Microfinance and the Arab Spring

Since the beginning of 2011, a revolutionary wave of demonstrations and protests have been taking place in the Arab world. These events have created some challenges and opportunities for the microfinance sector and the financial inclusion agenda in the region.

Waiting in Line…Where’s My Agent? Headlines and Highlights

I’m blogging from Dakar, Senegal where I had a stark reminder of why innovation in financial services is so necessary.

The Role of Government in Mobile Financial Services

How can governments effectively support mobile financial services (MFS) expansion?