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Analysis: South Asian SMEs Face Digital Turning Point as AI Adoption Accelerates
While artificial intelligence (AI) has already begun reshaping large corporations in the region, most SMEs remain trapped in traditional, low-efficiency business models that limit scalability and financial resilience.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Building the Financial Services Stack of the Future: Why True Resilience Requires a More Holistic Approach
Over the last decade, financial inclusion has experienced unprecedented progress, as 79% of adults globally now have a financial account compared to 62% 10 years ago. But according to Payal Dalal at the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, most financial inclusion initiatives are still organized around verticals like loans, savings and insurance, and delivered through separate providers and channels, which forces customers to piece them together into a comprehensive safety net or growth path. She argues that the financial services stack of the future must address this lack of integration, delivering solutions that meet multiple financial needs simultaneously — while responding to the growing headwinds that individuals and entrepreneurs face today.
- Categories
- Finance
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Relief for MSME Workers as New Pension Scheme Opens Door to Affordable Retirement Savings in Kenya
The deal aims to bring micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) into the country’s formal pension system through the Octagon Umbrella Retirement Benefits Scheme.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
- Tags
- financial health, MSMEs, partnerships, savings
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When AI Gets It Wrong: Lessons from a Women-Centered Design Experiment Highlight the Need for Inclusive GPTs
In emerging markets, women entrepreneurs continue to face systemic barriers to financial inclusion. And as Koheun Lee at CARE explains, ChatGPT and other AI models sometimes contribute to this exclusion, reinforcing societal biases that limit women’s potential for business growth and long-term financial health. She shares insights from CARE's attempt to build a women-centered design GPT — and proposes some practical steps AI users can take to mitigate bias against women when working with mainstream GPTs.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Report: Beyond Financial Inclusion: What Drives Financial Health for Women Entrepreneurs?
CARE’s new Strive Women report finds digital divide, financial stress and household responsibilities limit business success in emerging markets.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Global
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uMunthu Fund Exits Baobab Nigeria
The impact of this now-completed partnership is far-reaching: from operating only in Kaduna state to 16 states in Nigeria.
- Categories
- Investing
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Why Insurance Matters: Announcing the European Microfinance Award 2025 on ‘Building Resilience Through Inclusive Insurance’
Insurance is a hard sell, especially among low-income populations. Yet as Sam Mendelson at e-MFP, and Matthew Genazzini and Asier Achutegui at the Microinsurance Network argue, affordable and tailored insurance products are essential to ensuring economic security and resilience in vulnerable communities. They explore the challenges and opportunities in offering insurance products to low-income customers, and announce the launch of the European Microfinance Award 2025, which will focus on “Building Resilience Through Inclusive Insurance.”
- Categories
- Finance
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From Proxy IDs to Autonomous Payments: Why the Future of Financial Services is Hyper-Efficiency
Despite the rise of digital banking and other technological advancements, financial services are still plagued by significant inefficiencies. Author and serial entrepreneur Arunjay Katakam explores the causes and consequences of these inefficiencies — including their impact on lower-income customers — and discusses some emerging innovations that are addressing them. He explains why the sector's growing efforts to streamline back-end processes, reduce transaction costs and enhance operational efficiency will be pivotal in shaping the future of financial services.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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