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UN report: Social network payments now reach nearly US $3 trillion in China

China cashing out as mobile payment soars (The Business Times)

China cashing out as mobile payment soars (AFP)

BSP Holds Digital Payments Leaders Summit as the Country Moves Closer to a Cash-lite Economy

Two challenges to help two billion reach financial security

Reposted from the original Gates Foundation blog on Impatient Optimists. Until recently, achieving financial inclusion for the world’s unbanked poor was a pressing goal with perplexing obstacles.

LEARNING SERIES >> How to scale up digital wages in line with the UN Principles for Responsible Digital Payments

Lessons from Bangladesh, Jordan, and Senegal

China Breakthroughs: Pay it forward on cashless society

Alipay, WeChat Near $3 Trillion

Bridging the Digital Divide and Supporting Increased Digital Trade: Scoping Study

The global economy is experiencing important technological shifts, with the rise of digital technology a key driver. This can be seen today in the rapid growth of the digital economy, broadl…

Accelerating Financial Inclusion in South-East Asia with Digital Finance

Focussing on women, and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), the paper highlights that digital financial solutions could play a significant part in closing gaps in financial inclusion and povides insights from Indonesia, Philippines, Cambodia, and Myanmar.

bKash: Revolutionizing Mobile Financial Services in Bangladesh?

This study discusses the emergence of bKash as the m-banking pioneer in Bangladesh. It focuses on the services provided by bKash and its current operating scenario in Bangladesh. bKash’s str…

Mobile Financial Services In Bangladesh

The report provides an overview of the MFS progress in Bangladesh and discusses how selection of staff and beneficiaries from USAID agriculture and health projects are using both traditional and mobile financial services.

Inclusive Growth Through Branchless Banking: A Review of Agent Banking and Its Impact

The paper explores the opportunities to overcome barriers to financial access in Bangladesh through branchless banking and emphasis that financial inclusion and inclusive growth could be advanced through existing work by Bangladesh bank on favorable agent banking policies

Alliance Reports >> Diagnostics

Aadhaar: Digital Inclusion and Public Services in India

Aadhaar, India’s program to provide a unique identity number for every resident, is the largest biometric identification program in the world. Launched in 2008, the program has created biome…

Country Diagnostic: Bangladesh

This Diagnostic Report shows Bangladesh is making significant strides toward a digital economy, and outlines specific policy measures that can underpin further digitization of payments into the future.

Government of Afghanistan Joins Better Than Cash Alliance

Government of Afghanistan Joins Better Than Cash Alliance — Pledges to Address Poverty and Grow Economy by Shifting to Electronic Payments…

In line with strategy to mature into an emerging economy, Nepal joins the Better Than Cash Alliance

Government aims for economic growth and women’s empowerment through digital payments initiative…

Introducing GSM-enabled PAYG Solar in Cambodia

The report tracks the implementation of a Cambodian company Kamwork’s pay-as-you-go (PAYG) solar home systems (SHSs) with GSM-based machine-to- machine (M2M) connectivity to validate the business model and determine what level of support from GSM network coverage.

Bringing E-money to the Poor: Successes and Failures

This report examines the successful lessons from Kenya, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Thailand case studies of “gazelles", that leapt from limitation to innovation by successfully enabling the deployment of e-money technology.