-
A $7 Smartphone is Launching in India Tomorrow
An Indian handset maker is ready to launch the country's cheapest smartphone under Rs 500 ($7), which could be a game changer in one of the world's fastest growing smartphone markets. Called Freedom 251, it has been manufactured by a homegrown company, Ringing Bells.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
NexThought Monday: Remittances Disrupted – Three ways to make the international remittance revolution stick
Every year, workers around the world send nearly half a trillion dollars to their families back home in developing countries. These international remittances are economic lifelines for millions, though the market has long been known primarily for its high fees, and we are still waiting for a true disruption to benefit the lives of the poor. Andria Thomas at Dalberg discusses three notable gaps that are ready for greater investment and action from the private, public and social sectors.
- Categories
- Technology
-
What a Bank’s Foundation Is Doing to Push Financial Inclusion in India and Beyond
It’s been a while since we’ve checked in on the Citi Foundation’s financial inclusion work, but rest assured that this funding is still going strong. Citi is one of the top driving financial inclusion forces in corporate philanthropy, splitting support among North America, Latin America, Asia/Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
-
Weekly Roundup: India Unfriends Facebook, Zika Shouldn’t be a Games Changer, and #IOT4D
Mark Zuckerberg finally found out “who could possibly be against” Facebook’s plan to offer free internet to the poor, why canceling the Olympic Games in Rio would punish Brazil and our new favorite hashtag #IoT4D.
- Categories
- Health Care, Technology
-
Vodafone Wallet & PayPal Ink Payments Partnership
The partnership will enable PayPal customers to link their accounts to Vodafone Wallet, allowing them to use Android smartphones to make contactless payments. According to PayPal’s European CEO, this marks the first time PayPal users will be able to make contactless payments.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Europe & Eurasia
- Tags
- digital payments, fintech
-
India’s Paytm Is Raising Another $400M to Build Out Its New Payment Bank
Alibaba-backed Paytm, one of the bigger e-commerce startups competing against Amazon in India, is raising money again, just months after a reported $680 million round. Sources close to the company say that Paytm is now looking to raise $400 million by June to help with the launch of Paytm’s new payments business, Paytm Payment Bank.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- fintech
-
WorldRemit Raises $45M to Tackle $600B Market
Remittances start-up WorldRemit has raised $45 million in debt to help it tap the business of using mobile wallets to send money across emerging markets.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- fintech, remittances
-
Viewpoint: Gene Drives Need Global Policing
Medical and biological research is being transformed by a powerful new form of genetic editing, known by the acronym Crispr. Based on a naturally-occurring system in bacteria, Crispr enables scientists to precisely alter the genetic code of any organism they can lay their hands on – humans included.
- Categories
- Health Care, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
Subscribe to Our Weekly Newsletter, "NextBillion Notes"
Published each Wednesday, our e-newsletter features NextBillion's latest original articles, along with a selection of news, jobs, bizdev opportunities and events from our recent coverage — and regular conference ticket giveaways.
We respect your privacy. Your information is safe and will never be shared.
Don't miss out. Subscribe today.