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How India’s Digital Payments Revolution Can Advance its Position as a ‘Soft-Power Superpower’
With cultural exports like Bollywood movies, delicious cuisine and yoga, India is already a soft-power powerhouse, argues Tidhar Wald. But with financial inclusion rising from 35 to 80 percent in just six years, and a biometric ID system that reaches 1 billion people, the country could become a soft-power superpower. Wald explores how India can both inspire and learn from other countries in creating an inclusive digital economy.
- Categories
- Finance
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MTN Ghana makes history with first mobile money-based IPO
The IPO is the largest ever undertaken by the country and if successful could set the stage for other companies to test the market.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Viewpoint: Blockchain: A Solution in Search of a Problem?
The question we have is not “Does blockchain work?” but "Does it work better than other technology solutions in the market?"
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Uganda’s parliament approves social media and mobile money taxes
The new taxes that take effect in the next financial year will see Ugandans pay a 1% tax on all mobile money transactions while they will also be charged 200 shillings ($0.027) for every day they access social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- fintech
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WhatsApp Hastens Payments Push for 200 Million Indians
“WhatsApp has a great starting point: a monopoly in chat,” said Vivek Belgavi, leader for financial technology at PwC India. “High engagement makes it a credible competition.”
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- South Asia
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China’s Ant Financial raises $10 billion at $150 billion valuation
Ant’s first fundraising targeting global money values the firm at $150 billion, the people said, compared with about $60 billion after its previous fundraising in April 2016.
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- Finance
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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A New Cryptocurrency For Social Entrepreneurs That’s All About Collaboration
The aim is to reward and encourage collaboration among members, who are located in 21 countries. “We think it’s going to help free up time and space for members to support each other and collaborate more,” says CEO Mark Eckhardt.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Kenyan regulator could force Safaricom to share agents’ network
Safaricom, which is 35 percent owned by South Africa’s Vodacom, controls 72 percent of Kenya’s mobile market, with close to 30 million subscribers.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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