Greg Chen

Gregory Chen served as CGAP’s Policy team lead through October 2021. The team helps policy makers adapt to the fast-changing world of digital finance, including developing and executing a strategy to engage multiple countries, regions, and global bodies—and oversight of the work of more than a dozen staff and consultants.

Gregory has 25 years of financial inclusion experience and deep regional experience in South Asia. His work has focused on hands-on start-up pioneer microfinance institutions, digital finance players, and FinTech. He has been part of forging new institutions and regulatory environments to support financial sectors. This includes work with the Aga Khan Development Network, BRAC, Telenor, and Dvara. He also has experience as a corporate banker at Bank of America and led the establishment of the financial services consulting firm Enclude in South Asia.

Gregory is a frequent speaker and lecturer on microfinance and digital finance in academic circles at BRAC University, Johns Hopkins, Tufts, Yale, and American University. He has been interviewed by BBC and quoted in the Economist. He has a Master’s degree in International Development from Harvard’s Kennedy School and an undergraduate degree from Wesleyan University.

By Greg Chen

Blog

What Should We Realistically Expect from Regulatory Sandboxes?

Just how far could regulatory sandboxes go toward spurring financial innovations in low-income countries?
Blog

Should Other Countries Build Their Own India Stack?

India’s new financial infrastructure, including its biometric ID system, has been making headlines lately. But what exactly is "India Stack"? Should other countries replicate it?
Research

Digital Finance Interoperability & Financial Inclusion

Interoperability—the ability for different systems to connect with one another—is attracting a lot of attention among digital finance experts. This Working Paper presents findings from a 20-country scan conducted in 2016 to assess the state of interoperability in select markets around the world.
Blog

The Power of Smartphone Interfaces for Mobile Money

An initial set of 21 principles for the design of smartphone interfaces and mobile money has been released. This powerful new area of research can harness the power of smartphones to better serve the poor.
Blog

The Unusual Financial Dynamics of Short-Tenor Digital Credit

Digital credit is disbursed and recovered rapidly, often in 30 days or less, and generally with loan amounts smaller than conventional credit or micro-lending. CGAP built a digital credit financial model to investigate the basic financial dynamics of loan portfolios made up of short-term, small loans.