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Getting 4 Billion New Internet Users Online: Deploying Conversational AI at the BoP
Do you remember JARVIS, the computerized personal assistant who helps Tony Stark manage his complex super hero affairs in the Iron Man movies? With the rise of conversational Artificial Intelligence (AI) like Google Home or Amazon Echo, or the smartphone-based Viv, Siri, Cortana, etc., similar JARVIS-like services may be available in the not-so-distant future. But wouldn’t it be better if this technology actually helped increase equality of global mobile access and information, in addition to just ordering take out?
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- Technology
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- fintech
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White House Report: Financial Inclusion on the Rise
Financial inclusion has been on the rise across all demographics and geographies over the last two decades, according to a report published by the White House Council of Economic Advisors today.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- North America
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Study Bitcoin & Blockchain, Federal Reserve Chair Tells Central Banks
A recent event in Washington attended by representatives from over 90 central banks had Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen encourage her counterparts to study emerging technologies, specifically mentioning bitcoin and the blockchain.
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- Uncategorized
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- North America
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- fintech
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Report: Cashless ecosystem spells big bucks for fintech startups in India, to reach $2.4 billion by 2020
A joint report by KPMG and NASSCOM titled 'Fintech in India argues that a robust fintech collaborative ecosystem - with startups engaging in external partnerships withfinancial institutions, universities and research institutions, venture capitalists, technology experts, government agencies - will be the key platform for the forecasted growth.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- South Asia
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- fintech
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Tech Mahindra Is the Third Entity to Drop Its Payments Bank Plan in India
Mahindras on Tuesday became the third entity to drop out of the payments bank race, saying business profitability would take longer time due to “aggressive posturing” by many deep-pocketed players.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Viewpoint: Unified Payment Interface Will Be the Next Big Thing in Mobile Banking in India
Mobile payments just got a leg-up, thanks to the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), probably the only app of its kind in the world. Virtual wallet services have been around for a while now. UPI goes a step further and allows you to make payments by simply entering the payee's virtual ID on your smartphone and feeding the PIN the app requests. The money is debited directly from your account and transferred to the payee in a matter of minutes, without you having to provide either your bank details or the payee's bank IFSC code. In a few simple steps you can make transactions worth up to a lakh. The app on your phone need not be of the bank you hold your account in, but of any bank whose user experience you prefer. The same goes for the payee. But the transactions still take place between the underlying banks, without you even knowing about it. No need to worry about your credit card details being compromised.
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- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- digital payments, fintech
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Samsung Pay Strikes Partnership With Chinese Online Payment Giant Alipay
Samsung announced today that it has cemented a deal that will make Alipay, China’s largest online payments platform, available through Samsung Pay.
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- Technology
- Region
- South Asia
- Tags
- digital payments, fintech
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The Unstoppable Rise of Fintech Is Rapidly Changing the Way Africans Transact
Africa is fertile ground for new fintech services which are leveraging the power of communities and social media to make financial services more relevant, while using data to deliver more meaningful financial services on an ongoing basis.
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- Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa