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Indian Mobile Wallet Leader MobiKwik Raises Close to $25 Million in Funding, Targets Another $100 Million By End of 2015
Mobile wallet company, MobiKwik, which has over 15 million users and 25,000 merchants, has announced that it raised close to $25 million in a Series B round led by Tree Line Asia. Cisco Investments, American Express and the existing investor, Sequoia Capital were part of the fund raising drive.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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The Social Media Network Saving Lives, No Internet Needed
At one of India’s most prestigious tech universities, IIT Delhi, assistant professor in technology for development Aaditeshwar Seth has been spearheading a social media network for the country’s rural and largely poor population—no Internet required.
- Categories
- Health Care, Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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Driving Financial Inclusion at 4G Speed
Base-of-the-pyramid financial services providers in emerging markets are increasingly using data analytics to pioneer new products for reaching the unbanked. Alifinance in China is using the underlying transaction data of vendors on the giant online platform Alibaba to underwrite small business loans. M-Shwari in Kenya leverages M-Pesa's mobile money data for short-term, unsecured credit. Cignifi analyzes cell phone usage to provide credit as well as savings propensity scores. Lenddo uses online social network data for credit risk assessment. Similarly, a number of companies including Tiaxa and MODE use cell phone data to extend immediate nano-credits to prepaid customers who run out of airtime balances.
- Categories
- Technology
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MIT Alum Hopes to Spread Tech-Boom Excitement in Young, Increasingly Connected Middle East
Some of the Middle East’s most promising entrepreneurs and deep-pocketed investors gathered at the Habtoor Grand Hotel here last month for the sixth edition of the ArabNet Digital Summit, one of the largest forums for the Middle East’s burgeoning startup industry.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- North Africa & Near East
- Tags
- impact investing
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Obgyn Training in Sub-Saharan Africa Bolstered By New Collections Shared Both Online and Offline
U-M’s 1000+ OBGYN Project provides free access to educational materials to support ob-gyn training in Africa for improved maternal, newborn care.
- Categories
- Education, Health Care, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Africa Can Lead the Way in Mobile
It is a truth universally acknowledged that the future of Africa is mobile. And it does seem that the good news for mobile in Africa keeps on rolling in. This month a bullish MTN Group announced a 20% jump in net profit in 2014 from the previous year, with sales growth in Nigeria and other major markets such as Cameroon and Uganda. The company announced that it would invest R30bn this year to grow its infrastructure in the 23 countries where it operates.
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- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Report: Over 700 Million in Asia Already Bank Digitally
According to a new report from McKinsey & Company, smartphones and high speed Internet access are transforming banking habits in Asia where over 700 million people already regularly conduct transactions online.
- Categories
- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
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Cellphones for Women in Developing Nations Aid Ascent From Poverty
Here is what life is like for a woman with no bank account in a developing country. She keeps her savings hidden — in pots, under mattresses, in fields. She constantly worries about thieves. She may even worry about her husband taking cash she has budgeted for their children’s needs. Sending money to a family member in another village is risky and can take days. Obtaining a loan in an emergency is often impossible.
- Categories
- Technology
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