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Zimbabwe’s EcoCash Woes Show Dangers of Early Reliance on Mobile Money
The growth of EcoCash was driven by its ability to extend financial inclusion by drawing in previously unbanked customers. But recurrent power blackouts and food shortages in the context of a currency crisis are now showing the fragility of that model.
- Categories
- Finance
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Viewpoint: Libra’s Top-Down Model Doesn’t Match Its Financial Inclusion Mission
Though the use of Libra to pay for a Spotify subscription, an outfit on Farfetch, or a holiday on Booking.com is certainly an on-ramp for mainstream adoption, the appeal and necessity of such services to the underbanked, as part of the currency’s underlying mission, is mismatched.
- Categories
- Finance
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In Sierra Leone, New Kiva Protocol Uses Blockchain to Benefit Unbanked
The National Civil Registration Commission developed the national digital identity platform with support from Kiva, a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco that allows people to lend money to low-income people around the world, as well as the United Nations Capital Development Fund and the United Nations Development Programme.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
- Region
- Sub-Saharan Africa
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Bringing Digital Financial Inclusion to Women: The Impact of an Integrated Ecosystem Approach
Despite many global initiatives aimed at catalyzing formal banking, almost 1 billion women remain excluded from the financial economy. According to Ankur Seth and Neha Kumar at Intellecap, it's now clear that financial inclusion for women cannot be attained by simply giving them an account or internet access. Instead, it will require an integrated digital financial ecosystem designed for women's needs – an approach Intellecap is piloting in India.
- Categories
- Finance
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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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What Facebucks Can Do for the Global Poor
Global, open, instant, and low cost: It sounds undeniably great. The status quo, while global, is hardly open, instant, or low cost. Still, Libra faces major challenges in becoming a preeminent financial tool of the global poor.
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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Viewpoint: No, Facebook’s Libra Will Not Really Help The Unbanked
Ultimately, the aim of Libra is to be a truly mainstream cryptocurrency: a decentralized global form of payment that is as stable as the dollar, can be used to buy almost anything, and can support an entire range of financial products—from banking to loans to credit.
- Categories
- Finance
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Viewpoint: Facebook’s Libra Cryptocurrency Could Be Great, if Not for Facebook
Libra is the evolution of that early goal, now with grander ambitions. Facebook wants to completely reshape how people make online payments. By detaching from currencies like the U.S. dollar, Libra could bring instant, low-cost digital payments and transfers to anyone with a phone
- Categories
- Finance, Technology
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