Research & Analysis

Business Her Own Way: Creating Livelihoods Through Informal Online Commerce

Across the developing world there are millions of entrepreneurs, most of them women, who are engaged in a largely hidden but significant form of digital commerce that runs parallel to formal e-commerce – informal online commerce (IOC). Interventions to help women maximize the benefits of IOC should be based on a clear understanding of the different types of women who become IOC entrepreneurs, as they have different backgrounds, goals, and needs.

Snapshots: MFIs During the COVID-19 Crisis

CGAP and Symbiotics analyze COVID-19's impact on the performance of the more than 300 microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Symbiotics global portfolio, in this series of brief papers published between November 2020 and July 2021.

PAYGo PERFORM: Financial, Operational, and Portfolio Quality KPIs for the PAYGo solar industry

With the help of 600 colleagues from the PAYGO offgrid solar sector, a new set of 36 standard metrics covering portfolio quality, unit and firm-level economics, and company operational indicators are available today.

Getting Repaid in Asset Finance: A Guide to Managing Credit Risk

From Sub-Saharan Africa to the Indian Subcontinent, asset finance and leasing companies are doing invaluable, innovative work to finance critical assets for low-income and informal borrowers. But unlike banks and microfinance institutions, many of these companies do not have deep experience in organizing a credit operation, mitigating risk throughout a credit transaction or managing a portfolio of loans or leases.

Fintech and Financial Inclusion: A Funders' Guide to Greater Impact

This practical guide, based on two years of global research, describes how development funders can identify promising fintechs and maximize the impact of their support.

Fintech and Development Funders

With a strategic approach, development funders can expand fintech's impact on low-income communities and small businesses. See key findings from CGAP's fintech research at a glance in this infographic.

Development Funders and Inclusive Fintechs: Analyzing One Decade of Funding Flows

Are development funders providing catalytic support that helps build inclusive fintech markets? This slide deck analyzes a decade of funding flows into the fintech sector.

Regulatory Approaches to the Interest Earned on E-Money Float Accounts

What happens to interest earned on float accounts? CGAP believe that electronic money issuers should be allowed – but not required – to distribute some or all of the float interest to their e-money customers.

Elevating the Collective Consumer Voice in Financial Regulation

Exploring the potential impact of incorporating the collective voice of consumers into financial sector policy and regulation, and opportunities for funders to help elevate these voices.  

Micro and Small Enterprise Finance: Examining the Impact Narrative

Micro and small enterprises are a vital part of the livelihoods and resilience strategies of poor households across emerging markets. This deck reviews existing impact literature and identifies key knowledge gaps.