Stefan Staschen

Senior Financial Sector Specialist

Based in Berlin, Stefan Staschen led CGAP's Digital Financial Services Regulation and Supervision project. He has more than 20 years of experience working on financial inclusion, focusing on policy and regulatory issues in microfinance and digital financial services. He has worked with numerous regulators and supervisors primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, but also in Central and Eastern Europe, Southeast Asia, and Arab countries.

Before joining CGAP in 2016, Stefan worked for 15 years as an independent consultant on inclusive financial policy and lived for several years each in the United Kingdom, Kenya, and Turkey.

Stefan has a Doctorate degree from the London School of Economics and a Master’s degree in Economics from the Free University of Berlin.

By Stefan Staschen

Research

Nonbank E-Money Issuers vs. Payments Banks: How Do They Compare?

A special licensing category for nonbank e-money issuers is considered a key regulatory enabler for inclusive digital financial services. This Technical Note compares the EMI license with the payments bank license that India, Mexico and Nigeria have created.
Blog

Cheaper Remittances: How Malaysia and the Philippines Paved the Way

Globally, people pay an average fee of 6.9 percent to send money to family and others abroad. In one of Asia’s largest remittance corridors, between Malaysia and the Philippines, the average fee is only 3.7 percent. Smart policies have played an important role in bringing prices down.
Research

Safeguarding Rules for Customer Funds Held by EMIs

This Technical Note looks in detail at safeguards such as maintaining customer funds in bank accounts and diversifying funds across several banks to reduce the concentration risk. It also discusses the option – offered in some countries – of placing funds in other safe, liquid assets.
Research

A Guide to Supervising E-Money Issuers

This paper provides general guidance to supervisors in emerging markets and developing economies who are designing proportional approaches to EMI supervision, and serves as a reference for drafting or improving EMI supervision manuals in a few specific areas.
Blog

Bank-Led Digital Finance: Who’s Really Leading?

In countries where regulators favor “bank-led” digital finance models, nonbanks are playing important – even dominant – roles in digital finance.