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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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AI Risk Management in Digital Finance: Protecting Africa’s Underbanked from Invisible Threats
Digital finance has been a game-changer for financial inclusion across Africa. But as information technology security analyst Nathaniel Adeniyi Akande explains, many communities remain excluded — and though AI-powered lending tools offer new opportunities to reach them, these tools also introduce new risks that can undermine trust or even exclude the people they are designed to serve. He argues that it is digital lenders’ responsibility to anticipate and mitigate these threats, and explores several practices that are essential to AI risk management in the sector.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Analysis: How Wise’s Entry Into South Africa Could Transform International Money Transfers
This marks Wise’s first fully licensed operation on the African continent, a milestone with big implications.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Entrepreneur-Friendly Inclusive Finance: A Survey of Brazilian MSMEs Highlights Key Lessons for Lenders
In Brazil, impact-focused lenders like Estímulo are successfully reaching small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with inclusive lending approaches. But as Carla Grados-Villamar at 60 Decibels and Lucas Conrado at Estímulo explain, inclusive finance is not just about disbursing loans — it’s about understanding entrepreneurs’ realities and adapting accordingly. They share findings from 60 Decibels' interviews with over 400 Estímulo loan applicants, highlighting lessons lenders can use to improve business outcomes for borrowers, and prepare non-borrowers for future credit opportunities.
- Categories
- Finance
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RADIANT YACU of Rwanda Wins European Microfinance Award 2025
"RADIANT YACU’s model bundles affordable hospital cash and funeral cover with microfinance services, leveraging group structures to make enrolment simple and premiums sustainable."
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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IFC Commits $6 Million to First Circle Capital to Back Early-Stage Fintech Growth in Africa
"Founded and managed by a female-led executive team, First Circle operates from offices in Kampala (Uganda) and Casablanca (Morocco) and is registered as a limited partnership in Delaware."
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Top-Down vs. Bottom-Up: Bhutan and Fiji’s Contrasting Paths to Digital Transformation Reveal the Pros and Cons of Government and Market-Driven Approaches
The pursuit of digital competitiveness — the capacity and readiness to adopt digital technologies — has led to remarkable success stories in emerging markets, transforming public infrastructure and enhancing the delivery of social and financial services. But as Neeraj Lekhwar and Garima Singh at FinValue Advisors explain, this path remains challenging for many nations — particularly small countries. They share insights from a FinValue study involving Bhutan and Fiji: two countries with comparable sizes and socioeconomic structures that have approached their digital transformation very differently. The policy paths they've taken present contrasting examples of digital adoption strategies that provide valuable lessons for other small markets.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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ADB Approves $30 Million Loan for GCash’s Fuse Financing to Boost MSME Lending
According to the ADB, Fuse’s new project aims to reduce poverty and promote social inclusion by expanding MSMEs’ access to financing, particularly in underserved and marginalized areas.
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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