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China’s move to regulate Internet payments sparks concern
China is moving to limit the lightly regulated world of internet payments, an initiative that some critics warn could stifle development in one of the most innovative sectors of the economy.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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An Uphill Climb: Smart Campaign director Isabelle Barrès, on the challenges of promoting client protection in microfinance
The Smart Campaign’s numbers are growing: It has certified 39 microfinance institutions as meeting its client protection standards, and these MFIs now serve slightly more than 20 million clients. But achieving this momentum hasn’t been an easy task for the campaign – or for the industry it’s trying to improve. Smart Campaign director Isabelle Barrès discusses the challenges in part one of this Q&A.
- Categories
- Impact Assessment
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Why South Africa’s largest mobile network, Vodacom, failed to grow M-Pesa
With just one million subscribers at the end of March 2015—the uptake of the mobile money platform M-Pesa has been labelled a failure in South Africa.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Posta Uganda to Launch Financial Services
Posta Uganda will launch financial services to use its country wide postal networks to promote financial inclusion especially the unbanked rural communities.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Singapore Fintech Out to Empower Asia’s Unbanked
For most of us including Singaporeans, not having access to credit and debit cards is almost unheard of. Beyond the Little Red Dot though, citizens in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East continue to transact with cash and coins. They are the world’s unbanked who have minimal contact with banks and financial services. Though the unbanked make up about half of the world’s adult populace today, emerging financial technology startups including Singapore fintech startups are amplifying efforts to bring financial inclusion to the unbanked right at their fingertips.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Islamic banking consistently expanding in Pakistan
Last week, the State Bank of Pakistan granted its first license to a micro-finance bank and brought it into the Islamic mode.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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Seven Approaches to Agent Management: A new paper documents the variety of ways that digital finance providers assemble and manage agent networks
Agent networks are the main service touch points for most digital finance customers, and they’re probably the most challenging and costly element of the value chain. The authors of a new paper, Designing Successful Distribution Strategies for Digital Money, discuss how digital finance service providers in various regions have assembled and managed their agent networks.
- Categories
- Education
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President Obama a Fan of M-PESA, Kenyan Innovation
US President Barack Obama has endorsed Kenya's innovation powerhouse status and regional economic might during the opening of the 6th Global Entrepreneurship summit.
- Categories
- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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