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EasyPaisa: Incentivizing Mobile Wallet Usage in Pakistan

The majority of mobile money customers in Pakistan prefer to transact via agents. However, registered mobile money accounts are critical for financial inclusion.

The Complex Smallholder-Arthi Relationship in Pakistan

Arthis (agricultural agents) are an integral part of the financial lives of the Pakistani families taking part in the CGAP Smallholder Diaries research.

Telenor’s Shared Agents: Digital Finance Catalyst for Bangladesh?

New business models for agent networks, such as shared agent networks, are emerging and may offer more sustainable, competitive and efficient mobile financial services.

Lessons on Customer Empowerment from Women in Rural India

CGAP is seeking to answer questions and test ideas that explore the concept of empowerment and the role it can play in building customer trust and confidence.

Can Digital Cash Transfers Enable Financial Inclusion in India?

Although digitizing cash transfers in India is gaining momentum with a renewed effort by the national government, the direct positive impact on financial inclusion remains unclear.

Digital Finance in Bangladesh: Where are all the Women?

Bangladesh has long been a success story for women’s financial inclusion, but in terms of digital finance, the story is very different.

What Will It Take for Payments Banks to Succeed in India?

Despite the introduction of innovation-friendly regulations and other advances, wide-scale digital payment services remain unproven in India.

Can India Achieve Universal Digital Financial Inclusion?

India's Prime Minister has launched an ambitious financial inclusion program aimed at reaching 75 million people with bank accounts and subsequently government transfers, insurance, pensions and credit.

2015 Set to be Big Year for Digital Financial Inclusion in India

Key regulatory moves in India during 2014 were digital finance game-changers.

Mobile Money in Pakistan: From OTC to Accounts, Part 1

The latest data from the Intermedia Financial Inclusion Insights survey suggests that providers continue to focus on basic over-the-counter (OTC) services. Kabir Kumar and Dan Radcliffe discuss lessons learned from the survey and Pakistan’s potential for digital financial inclusion.

How Can Group Loans be Provided more Responsibly?

In order for financial products to help people meet their goals, the products need to fit in with a household's natural cash flows and financial situation.

bKash Bangladesh: What Explains its Fast Start?

bKash is the fastest growing provider of mobile financial services in Bangladesh, having registered 11 million accounts in just 30 months. Several factors have combined to help bKash be an early success in a relatively new market.

Can India Achieve Financial Inclusion within the Next Few Years?

The new Government of India has made financial inclusion one of the cornerstones of its policies and has set the target of every adult having a financial account by August 2015.

New Data Shows Only 6% of India is Aware of Mobile Money

Financial inclusion in India has the mandate at the highest level of policy making, but the market has yet to respond positively to regulations that allow both public and private actors to pursue digitized payment services. Understanding demand for financial services is key to design services that reach scale.

Three Lessons from Mobile Microinsurance in Bangladesh

Bima recently commissioned a survey of active Bima Life Insurance customers in order to better understand the profile and behavioral patterns of mobile microinsurance customers in Bangladesh. This blog gives an overview of the findings.

Can a Digitized Post Realize India’s Financial Inclusion Dreams?

With a giant effort currently underway to digitize India’s Post, this blog analyzes the prospects of India’s postal network to address the country’s financial inclusion challenges.

The Road Ahead: Implementing Kaleido at Scale

Janalakshmi, an urban microfinance institution in India, is putting its customers at the center of its business with a mapping tool called Kaleido.

Selecting a Site for Smallholder Financial Diaries in Pakistan

CGAP and Bankable Frontier Associates have begun a study that examines the financial lives of smallholder agricultural families in Mozambique, Pakistan, and Tanzania. Here, we look at how we chose an appropriate site in Pakistan.

Why Financial Diaries to Understand the Needs of Smallholders?

CGAP is working with Bankable Frontier Associates to conduct a financial diaries project on 90 families in Tanzania, Mozambique, and Pakistan.

Creating an Insights Engine for a Customer Centric Organization

In the first of a multi-part blog series, we take a look at a unique customer profiling tool called Kaleido. Created by Janalakshmi Financial Services, the tool maps the financial context of a household, getting us closer to a customer-centricity.