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It’s Time to Change the Equation on Consumer Protection

For financial inclusion to work for the poor, it’s time to move beyond consumer protection frameworks that are more about protecting providers than customers.

We Need to Talk About Credit

Digital credit is a testament to the ways in which technology and new business models can assist in the expansion of financial services to low-income households. But it also points to potential hazards of letting a market develop unchecked.

6 Data Protection Rights for Empowering People in the Digital World

The digital economy presents an opportunity to provide greater rights to individuals exactly when it matters.

3 Data Protection Approaches That Go Beyond Consent

Consent forms are the backbone of data protection efforts worldwide, but there’s a problem: no one reads them. To protect people’s data, policy makers must go beyond consent.

Data Protection and Financial Inclusion: Why Consent Is Not Enough

As the digital age progresses, consent is becoming a less meaningful way to protect people's rights over their data.

The Time for Data Protection Legislation Is Now

Data protection concerns are growing in emerging markets. Here are some data protection challenges that should be on policy makers' radars.

How Regulators Can Foster More Responsible Digital Credit

Regulators can help ensure digital credit helps, rather than harms, poor customers by taking these steps.

It's Time to Slow Digital Credit's Growth in East Africa

New research from Kenya and Tanzania reveals that digital credit is often used for consumption purposes and that delinquency and default rates are high, suggesting funders of digital credit markets should prioritize consumer protection.

4 Cyber Attacks that Threaten Financial Inclusion

Cybercrime is a growing problem for financial services providers and their customers in developing countries. Here are four attacks every provider should guard against.

3 Myths About Data Localization

Data localization is often pursued as a way to make financial data safer and easier for the government to access, but it can have unintended consequences for financial inclusion.

Customer Due Diligence and Data Protection: Striking a Balance

If financial services providers are going to work together to improve customer due diligence, more flexibility will be required to exchange customers’ information responsibly.

6 Things You May Not Know About Biometrics

Biometrics are likely the future of identification and identity verification, but it's important to understand their strengths and limitations to ensure they advance financial inclusion.

Protecting Consumers Means Thinking Like Consumers

People often make unexpected, even counter-intuitive, financial decisions. Understanding why is the starting point for good financial consumer protection policy.

The Biometric Balancing Act in Digital Finance

Biometric technologies are facilitating the rise of collaborative customer due diligence. It is crucial to understand all aspects of biometric solutions – security, cost, convenience, inclusiveness and accuracy – and how prioritizing one may come with trade-offs to others.

Kenya’s Rules on Mobile Money Price Transparency Are Paying Off

Kenya's pricing transparency rules have made customers more aware of the costs of using certain digital financial services, according to a new CGAP survey.

Data Privacy and Protection – Providers Share Their Perspectives

Just like customers themselves, providers deeply value the protection and security of the customer data they hold. They just have different reasons.

A Six-Ingredient Recipe for Data Protection

While data breaches in high-income countries dominate the news, data protection is also emerging as a major issue in lower-income countries. Here are six key questions to ask when evaluating a country’s legal protections for its citizens’ personal data.

How Developing Countries Can Prevent Their Own Equifax Breach

The Equifax data breach that exposed 145 million people's personal information holds two big lessons for developing countries: avoid centralized databases and let consumers control their own data.

Digital Credit: Data Sharing Can Improve Product Diversity

In a CGAP and M-Kopa pilot in Kenya, customers with greater control over their credit histories took up more credit and were more likely to pay it off in full.

A Practitioner and a Regulator Talk Digital Credit

Do the benefits of digital credit outweigh the risks for consumers? A practitioner and regulator share their viewpoints.