Blog

COVID-19: How Does Microfinance Weather the Coming Storm?

If the microfinance sector is going to survive the pandemic, we need to treat COVID-19 as the fundamental threat to the industry that it likely is. The millions who rely on inclusive finance to borrow, save and spend money are counting on us.

3 Trends in Women’s Financial Inclusion Funding

Funding for women's financial inclusion is on the rise, but just 10 percent of financial inclusion programs are identified as having a gender component, according to the CGAP Funders Survey.

India’s Proposed Data Protection Bill Breaks from Notice and Consent

The proposed bill would mark a significant advance in rethinking how to protect digital consumer rights, putting India at the forefront of modern data protection regimes.

What Do Low-Income Customers Want from Asset Finance?

Here are six lessons for offering asset finance to low-income customers, based on in-depth interviews with dozens of asset finance providers and their customers in developing countries.

How Can Licensing Regimes Keep Up with Financial Innovation in 2020?

Tech giants, digital banks, e-money issuers, fintech startups — as more diverse players enter the financial services space, they are becoming harder for regulators to classify and license. Here are four ways regulators can respond in 2020 and beyond.

Risk-Based Supervision Is Key to Financial Inclusion in 2020 & Beyond

In developing countries around the world, inadequate supervision risks neutralizing regulatory reforms designed to spark innovation and advance financial inclusion. Here’s what the global development community can do about it.

Hiding in Plain Site: Informal E-Commerce Among Women in Asia

Millions of women are buying and selling goods online across Asia — but, at least in Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan, they’re not transacting on e-commerce platforms. They’re using social platforms instead, often without digital payments.

Digital Finance: Cybersecurity Requires Deeper Industry Collaboration

Cybercrime poses a significant threat to financial inclusion. Here are two things mobile financial services providers and industry associations must do to make financial services safer and more trustworthy for low-income customers.

Vulnerable Groups in Lebanon Cite Health as Top Financial Challenge

A study of refugees and host communities in Lebanon points to a pressing need for financial solutions to help households manage health-related shocks.

Financial Inclusion for What?

The global evidence on the impact of financial inclusion consistently shows that poor people use financial services to help them achieve two outcomes that improve their well-being: building resilience and capturing opportunities.

Digital Finance APIs Come with Risks – Here’s One Way to Manage Them

Digital financial services providers can manage risks associated with open APIs by adopting standardized legal contracts with partners and third parties. Here are six key issues that a contract should clarify, along with a contract template.

Keeping Our Eyes on the Prize in 2020

What’s the path forward for financial inclusion in the decade ahead? Greta Bull shares the three guiding stars that CGAP is using to steer innovations toward the achievement of global development goals.

How Paystack’s APIs Are Enabling Entrepreneurs in Nigeria

Paystack's open APIs for digital payments are helping thousands of African companies to launch new business models and deepen customer relationships.

Risk Alert: Development Community Support Needed for Cybersecurity

Here are four things the development community can do to improve cybersecurity as digital financial services expand in developing countries.

E-Commerce Is Taking Off in Rural China: 3 Lessons for Other Countries

China's e-commerce market has $2 trillion in annual sales and is growing as digital services reach rural areas. CGAP visited several villages and spoke with farmers and manufacturers about e-commerce. Here's what we learned.

African Digital Credit Goes West

Digital credit is emerging in West Africa. Despite early reports of low default rates, consumer protection policies will be key to avoiding problems witnessed in East Africa.

Top 10 Blog Posts of 2019

The most widely read blog posts of 2019 cover topics like the impact of financial inclusion, how Kenyans really use M-PESA, and more.

How Are Kenya’s Youth Experiencing the Gig Economy?

The gig economy is on the rise in Africa. What does this mean for youth? In Kenya, CGAP interviewed young people to get their perspectives.

How Fintechs Could Digitize Store Credit in the Arab World

People in the Arab world rely on store credit almost twice as much as people in other regions. Here are three ways fintechs could digitize this type of credit.

Last-Mile Agent Networks: Why Public-Private Partnerships Matter

Building out rural agent networks isn’t just about harnessing digital innovations. Global experience shows that it’s also about the public and private sectors working together.