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Weathering a Perfect Storm – Part 1: The Challenges Facing Fintechs in Emerging Markets During COVID-19
Fintechs have proven their potential to deliver financial services to low- and middle-income customers in emerging markets. But even the most innovative approaches can fail in an economy devastated by COVID-19. In this article – the first in a two-part series – analysts at MSC explore the challenges and opportunities the pandemic brings to the fintech sector.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
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Digital Financial Services Could Fast-Track UN SDGs
Change is afoot in Africa as governments work tirelessly to identify their most vulnerable citizens for emergency disbursements. Banks, mobile money operators and Fintech firms are providing innovative solutions to meet their client needs and this may be a significant opportunity for lasting positive change.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- digital finance, fintech, SDGs
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Press Release: GoBear Grabs $17M in Funding to Accelerate Its Financial Services Across Asia
GoBear, a Singapore based fintech startup, has raised US$17 million in a funding round led by returning investors Walvis Participaties, a Dutch VC firm, and Aegon N.V., a Netherlands-based asset management company, according to a press statement.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- digital finance, fintech, startups
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Orange Extends Africa Remittance Links
Orange added Morocco and Burkina Faso to the list of mobile money destinations its customers in France can remit funds directly to, a move it stated would cut consumer costs and increase the speed of transactions between the markets.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- digital finance
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Stronger Together: Why MIX and the Center for Financial Inclusion are Joining Forces
Yesterday came news that two key players in financial inclusion are joining forces: MIX, for nearly 20 years the chief data resource for inclusive finance, and the Center for Financial Inclusion, a leading independent think tank housed at Accion. Tillman Bruett at DAI and Greta Bull at CGAP discuss the significance of this merger for the organizations and the sector.
- Categories
- Finance
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Press Release: Impact of COVID-19 on the Online Payment Methods Market in the Middle East & Africa
According to the report, cash on delivery was the leading payment method preferred by online shoppers in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Morocco, Kenya, and other countries in this region, as of 2019. The COVID-19 outbreak in early 2020, however, is changing this perspective.
- Categories
- Coronavirus, Finance, Technology
- Region
- North Africa & Near East
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An Unlikely Mobile Money Success Story: How Somalia’s Civil War Laid the Foundation for a Cashless Society
Somalia has been ravaged by civil war, and the repercussions of the conflict continue to this day. Yet out of this violence and economic turmoil, a thriving mobile money ecosystem has emerged. According to Ahmed Muhamud Yuusuf at Hormuud Telecoms, the country has become the world’s first truly cashless economy. He explores the many positive impacts this accomplishment has had.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
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Press Release: Wave Money And Ant Financial Services Group Forms Strategic Partnership
The Myanmar Government plans to increase financial inclusion in the country from its current 48% to 60% by 2023.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Asia Pacific