The Better Than Cash Alliance is a partnership of governments, companies, and international organizations that accelerates the transition from cash to digital payments in order to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.
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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…
New IMF paper outlines policy strategies to help promote financial inclusion through fintechs in the Pacific Island countries. It calls on governments to close regulatory gaps and enhance digital and financial literacy while urging fintechs to take a regional approach to overcome scalability constraints.
“Purpose This paper aims to identify, analyse and organise the literature about blockchains in supply chain management (SCM) context (blockchain–SCM integration) and proposes an agenda for …
This study shows that per capita income, education, availability of digital infrastructure and greater internet penetration help in the growth of digital payments in an economy. For India, it suggests that the government should focus on providing a conducive macroeconomic environment and safe and easy access to digital infrastructure.
This FSD Kenya analysis demonstrates the utility of social media (Twitter) analytics tools for monitoring discussions around consumer protection.
This CG Dev paper, by Professor Njuguna Ndung’u, shows how M-Pesa’s success has led to a series of endogenous innovations that have shaped Kenya’s digital space. It outlines several important challenges that Kenya will need to address in order to further consolidate its success, including connectivity issues, digital ID, interoperability and consumer protection.
Read the University of Cambridge and UNSGSA report on how regulators are innovating to better respond to financial innovation….
This Brookings policy paper, by Prof. Njuguna Ndung'u, argues that instead of increasing the tax base, taxation on mobile phone transactions may end up reversing the adoption of digital payments in Kenya. It says these lessons are also relevant for other African countries considering similar taxes.
When digital services are designed to only be accessed by more powerful devices, the poor and marginalized are left out. This Institute of Development Studies report discusses barriers in accessing technology-related services in Bangladesh and how they can be removed.
This paper aims at investigating the driving factors for mobile money adoption in the WAEMU region. It identifies literacy rate, mobile infrastructure, and banking infrastructure (ATMs\100,000 people) as the main macroeconomic determinants for adoption.
The latest Financial Access 2019 survey shows that around 83% of Kenyans now have a formal account. Cost remains the main barrier for uptake. More Kenyans now save on their mobile phones (54%) than informally.
This USAID guide aims to: 1) illustrate how investments in ID systems impact individuals and their households; and 2) provide specific how-to guidance to help donors, program managers, and M&E specialists get started in thinking about ID ecosystems.
This report by GSMA and UNHCR looks at the ways in which refugees are using mobile phones to help guide digital interventions by humanitarian organizations and mobile network operators.
New GSMA and UNHCR report looks at the ways in which refugees are using their mobile phones to help guide digital interventions by humanitarian organizations and mobile network operators. It identifies affordability, literacy, digital skills, and charging as the main barriers to mobile phone ownership and mobile internet usage.
At a panel discussion during the recently concluded GSMA M360 Africa, Flourish’s Ameya Upadhyay presented on how to harness the power of new technologies to drive access and transparency. Check out his presentation.
This IMF brief takes a first stab at tackling the questions surrounding the rise of new forms of digital money.
Women face additional constraints because of their gender that affect their economic performance. New Oxford University Press paper suggests that specific design features - repeated micro-lending, variation in loan terms, private savings accounts, etc - in financial services can yield more positive economic outcomes for women.
A new Karandaaz study shows that around 95% of merchants in Pakistan do not accept digital payments. To promote adoption, it calls for creating awareness among users, better infrastructure, interoperability and reliability of services.
Based on surveys from 566 business leaders, a new VISA report finds that the top 3 (payments-related) fraud concerns are ID verification, data privacy, and transaction monitoring. It calls for taking a more holistic approach to fraud management which involves a mix of new technologies and new skills.
This World Bank discussion paper argues that digital payments, along with other policies and tools, can help extend pension coverage to the informal sector in Africa. It also features case studies from 5 Alliance members namely Kenya, Rwanda, Benin, Ghana, and Uganda.