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Staying Ahead of the Technical Assistance Curve: Six Lessons from Fintech Startups in India
India is at the forefront of inclusive fintech innovation. But it’s often difficult for Indian fintech startups to build and grow their businesses, while distributing the benefits of their work among their low-and middle-income (LMI) customers. MicroSave Consulting (MSC) is participating in a Financial Inclusion Lab, providing technical assistance to fintech startups serving India’s LMI segment. Authors at MSC share six key insights from their work that could be helpful both to startups, and to the investors, consultants and other organizations that support them.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Small Change: Why Behavioral Science Needs to Go Beyond ‘Nudges’ to Make a Real Impact
Behavioral science – the practice of leveraging human tendencies to produce desired outcomes – has become popular in the social sector. In particular, "nudges" – small changes that subtly encourage better behaviors – are often seen as a solution for everything from weight loss to financial health. But Mariel Beasley, co-founder of the behavioral science group Common Cents Lab, shares an uncomfortable truth: Small tweaks usually mean marginal changes, and half-measures like nudges are leaving most of the potential of behavioral science untapped.
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- Finance
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Why Payment Fraud is a Critical Threat to Financial Inclusion – And How Mojaloop is Making it Worse
The next key step in financial inclusion is payment interoperability, in which digital finance providers’ networks are connected to enable transactions between users of different systems. But though interoperability has major potential for the sector, it also comes with huge risks, says Clear Purchase founder Nick Brown, an expert in payment infrastructure. He explains why a massive payment fraud attack could do substantial and long-lasting damage to the financial inclusion movement, and how an open-source platform like the Gates Foundation's Mojaloop increases the risk.
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- Finance, Technology
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How Artificial Intelligence Can Simplify International Development Research: An Intriguing Experiment (Involving NextBillion)
International development professionals must often spend a great deal of time trying to keep up with news, trends and research about their area of activity – and this requires a lot of manual labor. But much of this can now be automated and aided by artificial intelligence (AI). Jacob Rosen and Ashirul Amin at BFA explore how they used AI to sort and categorize a vast amount of development-focused content online, using NextBillion's 5,000+ article library as a test case. The results of their experiment show how AI can help people reduce time and labor and learn more efficiently.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Creating an Inclusive Fintech Ecosystem? Here Are Three Facts Accelerators Should Consider
BFA's Catalyst Fund started with one goal: to support early-stage inclusive fintech entrepreneurs in developing accessible, high-quality and relevant financial solutions for the underserved. After three years of operations, the accelerator has worked with 20 startups across 13 emerging markets, helping to create better credit, payment, insurance, savings and investment solutions that improve the financial health of people with low incomes. Maelis Carraro and Rasima Swarup at BFA share some of the fund's lessons on how to build an inclusive fintech network.
- Tags
- fintech
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Moving Beyond Credit: Why Savings Should Take Center Stage in Digital Financial Inclusion
As mobile money continues to overtake traditional banking in emerging markets, putting financial services within reach of the unbanked, credit remains front and center in the conversation. But Buhle Goslar at JUMO says it's time to focus on an important yet underutilized tool that could help promote a well-rounded, healthy financial life for excluded customers – savings. She details how new tech and training programs can go beyond simple access and towards a new culture of savings.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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A Landmark Impact Investment: Could This Innovative Experiment with Islamic Finance Provide a Model for Both Sectors?
Impact investing and Islamic finance are two segments of the socially responsible finance spectrum that rarely intersect – despite having much in common. But according to Umar Moghul, a transactional lawyer with experience in Islamic law, a recent impact investment by Mission Driven Finance in Somali Family Service of San Diego offers an example of how the two sides can come together to boost their mutual impact.
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The Trouble With ‘Women’s Empowerment’ Programs: Perceptions vs. Reality in India
India's government, funders and development initiatives have an increasing focus on including women in different programs. But according to Sudarshan Thakur at PRADAN, these efforts often seem more concerned about what women can do for development than what development can do for women. He argues that social change cannot come only from outside interventions or credit. Instead, global development agencies need to engage with women across different communities and contexts, as women themselves are the best judges of the types of services and programs they need.
- Categories
- Finance
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