Searching: Research & Analysis

Testing the Waters: Digital Payments for Water and Sanitation

A growing number of water providers are experimenting with digital payments to reduce operational expenses and streamline service delivery. This paper extracts lessons learned from 25 water providers across Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Taming the Strange Beasts: Servicing and the Future of PAYGo

Despite its tremendous promise, the PAYGo industry is still young and challenging. Entrepreneurs and investors should expect and prepare for some failures. To plan for the future and prepare for unpleasant contingencies, there needs to be more focus on loan servicing in the PAYGo sector.

Digital Finance for the Real Economy: Water

This presentation is part of a series that synthesizes what we have learned and our insights into the power and challenges of digital finance.

Strange Beasts: Making Sense of PAYGo Solar Business Models

Despite their relatively recent emergence, PAYGo companies are rapidly approaching maturity. These businesses have the chance to reduce the energy poverty gap, drive financial inclusion, and improve the quality of life for millions of people.

Escaping Darkness: Understanding Consumer Value in PAYGo Solar

This paper uses research and interviews with customers to understand the value they derive from PAYGo solar, why they decided to purchase it, how they were able to afford and pay for it, and whether they considered the product a “good deal” in the end.

Digital Finance and Sustainable Water Service for All

This Brief on digital finance in the water sector looks at how people currently access water service, and finds that it varies from urban to peri-urban to rural areas.

Digital Finance and Innovations in Financing for Education

Innovations in digital finance can play a role in the Sustainable Development Goals' aim to “ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.”

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals

While the SDGs do not explicitly target financial inclusion, greater access to financial services is a key enabler for many of them. By reviewing the research on the link between financial inclusion and development, this working paper shows where and how financial services can help achieve the SDGs.

Access to Energy and Finance: An Integrated Approach

This paper analyses the synergies in the distribution of energy and financial services. It describes how an integrated approach could enable financial institutions to profitably serve low-income populations, thus enabling a significant source of growth.

Digitally Financed Energy

This Brief explains how digital finance is enabling pay-as-you-go energy expansion, which in turn provides a gateway to a range of financial products for the financially excluded.