-
5 Reasons Why India’s Aadhaar Journey Since 2014 Is Incredible
Numbers speak. In the case of Aadhaar — India’s biometric-based unique identification scheme for all citizens — the numbers are massive. What started merely as a unique identification programme six and a half years ago graduated to becoming a tool for public service delivery reforms in the second phase and for de-duplication, e-KYC and direct benefit transfer in the third phase. In its latest avatar, Aadhaar is poised to truly change the way Indians have done financial transactions until now.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
Indonesia: Bank Central Asia Launches VC Unit, to Invest $15m in Fintech
Indonesia’s largest private bank Bank Central Asia (BCA) has launched a venture capital business unit called Central Capital Ventura (CCV), joining the race to use financial technology (fintech) startups to reach the otherwise “unbanked” markets.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- South Asia
-
IPOs in Microfinance – The Good, The Bad, The Ugly: Highlights from Our Twitter Debate
Microfinance's first initial public offerings played an important role in both the sector's emergence and in its fall from grace. But in light of two recent successful IPOs in India, many are wondering if public investment is coming back into vogue in the industry. We gathered a panel of experts, including both optimists and skeptics, to debate the pros and cons of public investment in microfinance in a Twitter chat on Jan. 30; you can read the chat here.
- Categories
- Investing
-
Financial Inclusion for Rural Youth Starts with Adults
The three-year Rural Youth Economic Empowerment Project in Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia and Yemen tested five different approaches to achieving financial inclusion among rural youth. It found that the most sustainable and scalable approaches leveraged infrastructure that had been used to serve adults, then adapted to serve both adults and youth at the same time.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Tags
- financial inclusion, youth
-
Indian government exploring ways to insure mobile wallet balances
The government is exploring options to insure money in mobile wallets similar to how banks offer insurance on savings accounts. According to sources, the government is talking with the stakeholders — wallet players and insurance companies — to work on the rules.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
VISA, Atlas Mara in Major Payments Deal
Global payments firm Visa and Atlas Mara Limited that bought two of some of Rwanda’s biggest banks, have signed a commercial partnership to introduce new payment solutions and expand access to electronic payments within the Sub-Saharan Africa region.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
-
How small borrowers in six Indian villages went digital
In a first-of-its-kind initiative in micro-finance post-demonetisation, 60,000 small borrowers from six small villages in Odisha are leading the way towards cashless transactions. This was made possible thanks to a pilot done by Bharat Financial Inclusion (formerly SKS Microfinance) for cashless and paperless disbursals.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
India’s MFI sector yet to get over demonetisation impact
The microfinance industry is still facing challenges two-and-a-half months into demonetisation, with repayment collection taking a hit in some rural pockets where cash supply is yet to become normal and in parts of Maharashtra and poll-bound Uttar Pradesh, raising the spectre of a deterioration in asset quality.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia