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Jamaica Wants To Expand Agriculture, But Agribusinesses Are Finding It Impossible to Access Capital
Due to limited access to financial markets and a lack of legally recognized ownership of land, female-led agribusinesses are even more financially vulnerable.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Finance
- Region
- North America
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Reaching the Unbanked — MTN to Shake up Nigeria’s Fintech Sector
The scale of Nigeria’s low financial inclusion and the banking sectors’ inability to tackle the problem necessitated a change in strategy. Nigeria continues to lag behind other African countries in financial inclusion. While sub-Saharan Africa’s number of adults with a bank or other financial account increased to 43% in 2017, up 9% from 2014, Nigeria’s banked population dropped to 40%, down 4% from 2014.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Staying Ahead of the Technical Assistance Curve: Six Lessons from Fintech Startups in India
India is at the forefront of inclusive fintech innovation. But it’s often difficult for Indian fintech startups to build and grow their businesses, while distributing the benefits of their work among their low-and middle-income (LMI) customers. MicroSave Consulting (MSC) is participating in a Financial Inclusion Lab, providing technical assistance to fintech startups serving India’s LMI segment. Authors at MSC share six key insights from their work that could be helpful both to startups, and to the investors, consultants and other organizations that support them.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Why the Next Fintech Wave in Latin America will focus on B2B
While consumer-focused Fintech companies are still attracting the lion’s share of investments, here’s a look at why the next wave of Fintech innovation in Latin America will focus on solutions for SMEs.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
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Facebook’s Libra May Target Latin America First
“Latin America is going to be on of the easiest markets for Facebook to test Libra,” said Anouk Pinchetti, a digital currency consultant, adding that Facebook may choose a Latin American country as its first expansion market. “Western Union is viewed as too costly for remittances and there is great proximity to the U.S. and Silicon Valley.”
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
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Three Ways Technological Disruption is Fighting Inequality in Asia – And One Challenge it Hasn’t Yet Overcome
A wave of economic development is transforming Asia. But along with its many benefits, this growth is straining the region’s natural resources and leaving many poor communities behind. However, Sangeetha Watson at AVPN highlights some good news: Sustainable, tech-based solutions can help address these inequalities, particularly in financial inclusion, health care delivery and gender equity. She explores technology's impact on these areas – and flags one problem that tech has largely failed to address.
- Categories
- Social Enterprise, Technology
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Why South Sudan Mobile Cash Is a Game Changer
Zain launched the first mobile money service in the country after persistent reports made a case for it, noting that it is the most plausible way to bridge financial inclusion gaps. A negligible number of the country’s population own bank accounts.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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A Power Outage and Mobile Money Blackout Expose the Vulnerability of Zimbabwe’s Economy
In what seems like a never-ending cycle of misery for ordinary Zimbabweans in the last year, it is likely there will be more power cuts and ultimately more economic disruption due to the country’s currency troubles and—now, climate change.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology, Telecommunications
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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