by Renata Samadova -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Future of Fintech; June 14-15, 2023; Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; NEW DATES

Originally scheduled to take place starting March 1, this event will focus on “disruptive ideas from across the fintech ecosystem.” The two-day event offers online and in-person sessions including: (1) Evaluating Saudi Arabia’s FinTech [Financial Technology] Venture Activity – Key Drivers and Factors; (2) Offering Financial Flexibility to

by Saulius Ramanauskas -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Digital Finance Campaign Replication Guide,” Published by USAID

This paper describes a digital finance education campaign called “Hey Sister! Show Me the Mobile Money,” including efforts to make it easy to replicate from one geographical context to another. The program facilitates low-income women’s access to digital financial services (DFS) by addressing the challenges of

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Lulalend Raises $4.7m for SMEs in South Africa via Symbiotics Social Bond

Lulalend, a funder of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in South Africa, recently partnered with Symbiotics Investments, a Switzerland-based investor focused on smaller businesses in low- and middle- income countries, to issue bonds supplying USD 4.7 million to Lulalend. The bond issue is deemed socially responsible per the

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: CCAF-World Bank Study Finds Regulators in Africa Tops for Increasing Focus on Fintech, Cybersecurity Main Concern Worldwide

A recent survey of 128 financial regulators and supervisors worldwide found that just over half of respondents in low- and middle-income countries have been increasing their focus on financial technology (fintech) firms. The figure is about one out of three in

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: DFC to Support Mastercard Community Pass Program to Expand Access to Digital Services in Africa, India

The International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), which is backed by the US government, recently agreed to collaborate with the US-based financial technology firm Mastercard to strengthen Mastercard’s Community Pass program. Community Pass supports digital connectivity, smartphone penetration and identification systems in rural parts of India, Kenya, Mauritania, Mozambique, Tanzania and Uganda. DFC has agreed to invest up to USD 50 million in

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Woman-owned Fintech Owoafara Accepts Equity Investment from ShEquity to Expand Financial Inclusion via Apps, Payment Cards in Nigeria

Owoafara, a woman-owned financial inclusion firm in Nigeria, recently sold an equity stake of undisclosed size and price to ShEquity, a Mauritius-based investor in African firms owned and led by women. Owoafara’s services include payment cards, a general-purpose financial services app Fara and a peer-to-peer lending app Rouzo. Fara facilitates savings, payment, lending, insurance and pension services.

Owoafara CEO Tale Alimi noted the firm’s plans to expand in West Africa, adding, “Eighty percent of our current loan book are to

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mintoak of India Rolls Out App for HDFC Bank, Allowing Customers to Accept Electronic Payments

Mintoak, an India-based provider of payment management services for small companies, recently partnered with India’s HDFC Bank to allow the bank’s customers to accept card- and app-based payments via Mintoak’s SmartHub Vyapar app. The service targets

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Fintechs vs MFIs – a Debate at European Microfinance Week

e-MFP logoAt Thursday’s debate on “high-tech” versus “high-touch” financial services at European Microfinance Week, Dorcas Thorpe of Nigeria’s LAPO Microfinance Bank argued that customers in rural areas are more likely to access financial services via high-touch channels such as branches and agents rather than mobile money because they have – on average – lower levels of digital literacy and trust in digital financial services. Gregoire Lecomte of

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: Enabling Microinsurance via Technology: RFID Tags Slash Fraud, Costs of Livestock Cover in Rwanda

e-MFP logoAt a well-attended workshop today at European Microfinance Week, Ovia Tuhairwe, the CEO of Radiant Yacu Microinsurance, described her firm’s journey to develop a viable product to insure livestock in Rwanda. On its own, a subsidy of 40 percent from the Rwandan government did not make it easy to insure cattle, pigs and chickens in the country. Before Radiant Yacu moved to its current model in 2019, fraud was rampant, and costs were high at 10 percent of

by the MicroCapital Team -

SPECIAL REPORT: How to Achieve Responsible Digital Financial Services: European Microfinance Week Opens

e-MFP logoAt the opening plenary of European Microfinance Week, where over 500 attendees are gathering now in-person and online, Tidhar Wald of the UN’s Better Than Cash Alliance noted that over 1 billion more people worldwide have achieved financial inclusion over the past decade. While this has helped some to boost their livelihoods, many have accessed financial services via digital services, which carry different risks than in-person services. Data protection is an obvious example, as more client data is being digitized, and fraud is on the rise. Other risks, even though well-known to providers of in-person financial services, require different

by Renata Samadova -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Remote Coaching to Prevent Dormancy Among Low-income Savers,” by Scott Graham et al, Published by WSBI

This report addresses the phenomenon of “dormancy” in the savings accounts of new owners of financial accounts, whereby the newly established accounts go unused after initial deposits are complete. The authors describe the use of coaching – via phone calls and SMS messages – to increase

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Quona Capital Closes Fund III with $332m for Fintech in Africa, Asia, Latin America

Quona Capital, an investor in financial inclusion that has offices in 10 countries, recently announced the close of its Fund III, with this latest fundraising round engaging most of Fund III’s ongoing investors and 20 new ones. As a result, the fund has a total of USD 332 million in commitments, and the firm has USD

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Buying Maritime Microfinance, Fintech Lender Payhippo Gains Deposit License, Access to Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System

Payhippo, a financial technology (fintech) lender to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria, recently agreed to pay an undisclosed sum to acquire Maritime Microfinance Bank. Maritime was founded in 2014 and provides in-person loans and savings services to enterprises in Nigeria that have zero to 500 employees, mainly in the shipping and

by the MicroCapital Team -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Zubaida Bai Is New CEO of Grameen Foundation

Zubaida Bai has been selected to lead the Grameen Foundation, a US-based NGO that works to reduce poverty in Africa and Asia via “community agents,” who support people – especially women – in learning how to use digital financial services and farm in a “climate-smart” manner. Ms Bai is the founder of Ayzh, a provider of maternal and