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Minu, a Mexico City-Based, Pay-on-Demand Startup, Lands a $14 Million Series A
Many of the startups raising capital in Mexico are focused on financial inclusion, aiming to level the playing field in a country that is largely unbanked and has a burgeoning middle class.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
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Land Bank of the Philippines Lends Over $143 Million to MSMEs and Co-Ops for COVID-19
The Land Bank of the Philippines (LANDBANK) has approved loans totaling P6.95 billion for 227 borrowers composed mostly of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and cooperatives that are affected by the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
- Region
- South Asia
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In the Race for Dominance in African Fintech, Partnerships With Phone Makers Are Transforming the Landscape
Corporate partnerships and acquisitions have proliferated in Africa's fintech sector in recent years, as companies fight for dominance in the growing digital payment space. Digital economy analyst Jill Lagos Shemin highlights an emerging element of this trend: alliances between mobile phone makers and payment providers and telecom operators. She explores how these partnerships can boost customer access to smartphones and digital credit, while expanding Africa's digital finance ecosystem and building tech players' footprint in this sought-after market.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
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Brazilian Fintech RecargaPay Raises $70 Million Series C Round
Founded in Brazil in 2010, RecargaPay set out to provide a comprehensive and user-friendly financial services ecosystem that would be accessible even to people who do not have bank accounts.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
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Stori Raises $32.5 Million in a Lightspeed-led Series B to Build Mexico’s Credit Card for the Masses
While credit cards are commonplace in the United States, they are far less ubiquitous in many other countries, particularly those in Latin America. In Mexico in particular, cash remains the dominant method of payment, with an estimated 86% of all payments being in the form of cash.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
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Activating a Network of 4 Million: Community Health Workers are Key to Fighting COVID-19 – Here’s How They Can Accelerate Financial Inclusion
The COVID-19 pandemic has transformed the role of community health workers. According to Tanjila Mazumder Drishti, Khondokar Anwar Shadat and Raiya Kishwar Ashraf at BRAC, it has also demonstrated their potential as proponents of financial access — for themselves and the families they serve. They explore a BRAC initiative to enroll its 50,000 health workers in Bangladesh in mobile money, and share how this scalable model could have enormous implications for global financial inclusion.k
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Health Care, Transportation
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Brazilian Fintech RecargaPay Raises $70 Million Series C Round
The Series C round, co-led by IDC Ventures and Fuel Venture Capital, included the participation of ATW, LUN Partners, and Experian.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
- Tags
- financial inclusion, scale
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Transforming Microcredit After COVID-19: Why ‘Building Back Better’ Will Require a Radical Reboot of Local Financial Systems in the Global South
Microcredit advocates have expressed the expectation that the industry can play a major role in economic and social recovery in the Global South after the COVID-19 pandemic. But economist Milford Bateman argues that shifting these micro-lending programs into community-owned financial institutions would make a more substantial impact. He shares a roadmap for empowering community-focused economies, and explores how a plan modeled after elements of the U.S.'s New Deal could transform local finance.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
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