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Navigating fintech’s rise: IMF, World Bank launch guide for policymakers
The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank jointly released a paper intended to guide policymakers around the world in their handling of the rise of financial technology — commonly known as fintech.
- Categories
- Finance
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The Advantages of Boots on the Ground: Is it Really Possible to Digitize the Last Mile in Smallholder Agriculture?
Mobile connections, big data and technologies like artificial intelligence are creating new opportunities to serve smallholder farmers with financial and other services. But since many farmers still lack reliable internet and mobile connectivity, businesses serving these customers must still leverage both physical and digital tools, says Hamilton McNutt at Strategic Impact Advisors. He explores the different ways some businesses are combining digital innovations with an on-the-ground presence to solve the challenges of last-mile access.
- Categories
- Agriculture, Technology
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What’s happening with crypto in Latin America?
After the death of the global commodity boom that bolstered emerging markets in Central and South America, the region slowed to a crawl. But despite economic troubles in Venezuela and Argentina, Latin America as a whole is on its way back. And the fintech sector is leading the charge.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Latin America
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‘It is Time to Rethink Microfinance’: Exploring a Sector in Transition in the Asia Pacific Region
The Asia Pacific microfinance sector is changing. Its MFIs have seen rampant growth, and the enterprises they serve have financing requirements that are growing more complex. In response, some MFIs are adapting their business models into different types of financial institutions, such as small banks. In short, the sector is evolving from a niche segment to a mainstream industry – with all the challenges and opportunities that implies. The Asia Pacific Microfinance Forum will discuss this evolution in Singapore on October 30-31, bringing together MFIs, NGOs, impact investors, entrepreneurs and others, all committed to building a better world.
- Categories
- Finance
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Brazil’s Nubank is now worth $4 billion after Tencent’s $180 million investment
Through the investment, Tencent will gain an understanding of how Nubank has managed to service 5 million credit card holders, and the game plan the company is deploying to develop its own savings accounts and other banking services.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Latin America
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Why Kenyan Borrowers Aren’t Scared of Defaulting on Mobile Loans
The majority of Kenyans borrowing loans from mobile phones do not believe they have to pay loans back, a situation that is troubling banks venturing in this lucrative but risky segment.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Western Union Makes Digital Push Amid Fierce Competition for Money Transfers
Of the $81.8 billion Western Union consumers transferred in 2017, 91% was sent across international borders. Raj Agrawal, finance chief of the company, estimated that westernunion.com money-transfer revenue—which includes use of the mobile app—last year topped $400 million, or about 11% of consumer revenue.
- Categories
- Finance
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Ahead of Traditional Banking: How Africa Employs Blockchain For Financial Inclusion
On September 27, at the 73rd Session of the U.N. General Assembly (UNGA), Sierra Leone’s president Julius Maada Bio made an announcement where he declared that his country had set a new goal to create a national, blockchain-based credit bureau to “radically transform” the country’s financial inclusion landscape.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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