by Arin Atluri -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Tagit Developing Mobile App for Advans Microfinance Institutions in Africa, Asia

Advans Group, a Luxembourg-based microfinance organization with operations in nine low- and middle-income countries, recently partnered with Tagit, a Singapore-based mobile technology company, to develop a mobile banking application for Advans customers. The app will be based on

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROFINANCE PAPER WRAP-UP: “Leadership as a Driver of Innovative Financial Services for Women;” by Jaclyn Berfond, Jennifer Iwueze; Published by WWB

This paper offers an analysis of data collected from alumni of the Women’s World Banking Leadership & Diversity for Innovation Program (LDIP), which engages “senior executives and high-potential women leaders to enable them to successfully serve low-income women” customers of financial service providers (FSPs). The authors focus on “the strategic business initiatives of LDIP participants” and

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Nubank of Brazil Raises $750m in Equity, Mostly from Berkshire Hathaway, Sands Capital to Support Expansion in Latin America

Brazil-based digital bank Nubank recently raised USD 500 million from US-based holding company Berkshire Hathaway to help Nubank: (1) strengthen its management team with additional hires; (2)

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfund for Women (MFW) Expands Digital Capabilities via MoneyPhone Technology

Microfund for Women (MFW), a nonprofit microfinance institution in Jordan, recently partnered with MoneyPhone, a Netherlands-based financial technology (fintech) company, to enhance its digital offerings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Bdour Al-Hyari, the director of strategic planning and business development at MFW, cited the “opportunity for us to introduce new digital services, such as

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: MoneyGram Partners with InTouch, MFS Africa, Thunes to Expand Options for Sending Remittances to Mobile Wallets

MoneyGram International, a money transfer company based in the US, recently announced partnerships with three companies that facilitate e-wallet services in Africa: InTouch, which is based in Senegal; MFS Africa, which is based in South Africa; and Thunes of Singapore. The partnerships are giving MoneyGram “access to mobile wallets in 28 markets in Africa,” allowing its customers

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Mastercard Buying 3.8% Equity Stake in Mobile Money Unit of Airtel Africa for $100m

Mastercard, a US-based financial services company, recently agreed to pay USD 100 million for a 3.75-percent equity stake in Airtel Mobile Commerce, a subsidiary of the telecommunications company Airtel Africa that uses the trade name Airtel Money. Mastercard and Airtel Money plan to deepen their ongoing partnership in the areas of

by Bradley Shulman -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Belize Bank, Wallet Factory to Launch Digital Payment Service E-kyash

Wallet Factory, a financial technology company based in the UK, recently partnered with Belize Bank Limited, a commercial bank in Belize, to create E-kyash, a digital payment platform aiming to ease financial transactions for people without bank accounts. E-kyash’s offerings include utility bill payments, retail payments via

by Harriet Ritchie -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Central Bank of Iran Planning NFC System to Allow Retail Payments via Mobile Devices in Lieu of Cards

The Central Bank of Iran reportedly is developing a contactless payment system using near-field communication (NFC) technology that will allow customers to make retail payments using mobile phones. Among the goals of the effort is to reduce: (1) costs for banks and their customers; (2) the use of payment cards, which are gene

by Simrun Kothari -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Genie Enables 14m Bank of Ceylon Customers to Upload Funds for Digital Payments to Retailers, Utilities, Schools, Friends, Family in Sri Lanka

The operators of Genie, an app for performing financial transactions in Sri Lanka, recently partnered with the state-owned Bank of Ceylon (BOC) to allow the 14 million customers of BOC to upload funds to Genie, which can “securely hold credit and debit cards, current and savings accounts and eZ Cash accounts to promote seamless payment experiences.” Genie and the mobile wallet eZ Cash are

by Eugene DeCosse -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Turkish Mobile-payments Platform ininal Partners with Visa to Offer Cash-out at ATMs

A provider of digital wallets in Turkey, ininal, recently partnered with Visa, a US-based payment technology company, to offer prepaid Visa cards to its 3 million customers. This will allow ininal customers

by Shuyang Sun -

MICROFINANCE EVENT: Investor Forum: “Responsible Finance for Digital Inclusion: Investing for Impact;” April 3 – 4, 2019; Washington DC, USA

This forum is intended to bring together a wide range of investors to share insights on “social performance and impact management,” particularly as related to digital financial services (DFS). This will include discussions of the Guidelines for Investing in Responsible Digital Financial Services, which were established in 2018. These 10 guidelines cover

by Tiannah Steele -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Safaricom of Kenya Adds “Fuliza” Overdraft Feature to M-Pesa Mobile Money Service

Safaricom, a Kenya-based telecommunications company, recently debuted an overdraft feature called “Fuliza,” which allows customers of the firm’s M-Pesa mobile banking service to withdraw money from their accounts even when they have a zero balance. The overdrawn amount must

by Tiannah Steele -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: FINCA Zambia Borrows $1.5m from Grameen Credit Agricole Foundation for Microfinance Lending

The Zambian subsidiary of US-based FINCA Impact Finance has borrowed local currency approximately equivalent to USD 1.5 million from the Luxembourg-based Grameen Credit Agricole (GCA) Foundation for on-lending in Zambia. FINCA Zambia aims to

by Nicholas Galimberti -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Alipay, GCash Upgrade AlipayHK App for Users in Hong Kong to Send Remittances to the Philippines Using Blockchain

Mobile payment platforms Alipay, a unit of the China-based Ant Financial, and GCash, a unit of the Philippines-based Globe Telecom, recently partnered to extend the reach of AlipayHK, a mobile app that allows users in Hong Kong to

by Nicholas Galimberti -

MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Microfinance Investors Participate in Launch of Guidelines for Investing in Responsible Digital Financial Services

Fifty fund managers, investment funds, development finance institutions and NGOs from four continents recently launched the Guidelines for Investing in Responsible Digital Financial Services, a set of voluntary standards supported by the G20 group of large economies. CGAP (the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor), one of the