EL-Zoghbi discusses how COVID-19’s economic shocks are affecting incomes, and elaborates on the population segments most vulnerable to pandemic-induced shocks.

She also describes why financial inclusion alone is not enough, and how financial inclusion – especially when paired with digitization – can help distribute support from humanitarian and governmental organizations to the base of the pyramid.

Furthermore, El-Zoghbi mentions the Microfinance Coalition’s calls to action aimed at awareness-raising among <a href="https://centerforfinancialinclusion.org/microfinance-coalition-call-to-action-for-investors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">investors</a>, <a href="https://centerforfinancialinclusion.org/microfinance-coalition-call-to-action-for-donors/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">donors</a> and <a href="https://centerforfinancialinclusion.org/microfinance-coalition-call-to-action-for-policymakers/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">policymakers</a>.

Lastly, she predicts that insurance products will see higher demand, and notes that the crisis requires collective action that goes beyond market-oriented solutions.

El-Zoghbi is a member of the Advisory Council of BBVA's <a href="https://www.bbvaedufin.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Center for Financial Education and Capability</a>.

Read the full article <a href="https://www.bbva.com/en/how-to-strengthen-the-finances-of-the-vulnerable-population-against-the-crisis/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.

&nbsp;

BBVA Interviews Mayada El-Zoghbi on Financial Inclusion in the Pandemic Era

News

The elderly, young people, the homeless and casual workers are just some of the groups that might have a difficult time participating in the economy, the article notes. Some do not have the skills to use digital payments, do not have access to the internet, do not have a credit history or a fixed address:

A dependence on cash can be linked to the digital divide that exists in both rich and poor countries, said Mayada El-Zoghbi, managing director for the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI), an independent U.S. think tank.

“A move to a cashless society will not benefit all groups equally. The groups that are most likely to be excluded will be women, rural communities, and the elderly,” she said.

Read the full article <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-banks-britain-trfn-idUSKBN23X0XE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">here</a>.

&nbsp;

Reuters Quotes Mayada El-Zoghbi on Going Cashless During the Pandemic

Europe and Central Asia

United Kingdom

Aging and Older Adults

Underserved Groups

On each episode of Peter Renton's long-running show, the Lending and Fintech Podcast, a different leader in fintech and finance is interviewed in depth. On episode 245, Mayada touches on the following topics:
<ul>
 	<li>Her background in inclusive finance</li>
 	<li>The work that she did on the Global Findex database</li>
 	<li>Why she decided to take the job to be the head of CFI</li>
 	<li>The mission of CFI today</li>
 	<li>Why improving financial inclusion is about far more than technology</li>
 	<li>The geographies they focus on and the types of demographics</li>
 	<li>The relationship between CFI and Accion</li>
 	<li>How COVID-19 has impacted the agenda for CFI</li>
 	<li>The silver lining that could come out of this crisis</li>
 	<li>How it will affect the gender gap</li>
 	<li>What more fintech companies should be doing today in this area</li>
 	<li>The priorities that CFI is focused on beyond the current crisis</li>
</ul>
Listen below, or visit this episode's podcast <a href="https://www.lendacademy.com/podcast-245-mayada-el-zoghbi-of-cfi/">page</a>. Lend Academy's podcasts are available on iTunes and Stitcher.

Lend Academy Podcast features Mayada El-Zoghbi

Challenges and Crises

Enabling Environment

Financial Inclusion Strategy

The <a href="https://www.elespectador.com/economia/colombia-lidera-entorno-para-la-inclusion-financiera-regional-articulo-888988">article</a> (in Spanish) notes that Colombia -- along with Peru, Uruguay and Mexico -- lead the <a href="https://centerforfinancialinclusion.org/global-microscope-2019/">Global Microscope 2019</a> rankings this year. Supported by CFI and the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, an updated Microscope is published every year by the <a href="https://www.eiu.com/n/">Economist Intelligence Unit</a>. It assesses the enabling regulatory environment for financial inclusion in 55 countries worldwide.

<a href="https://events.iadb.org/calendar/event/20252?lang=en">FOROMIC</a> is hosted annually by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

In El Espectador: CFI, Mayada El-Zoghbi Mentioned in Microscope Coverage

Colombia

Latin America and The Caribbean

Policy, Regulation and Government Initiatives

Following the <a href="/id2020-summit-2019">ID2020 Summit</a> in September, Eric Noggle, Senior Research Director, talks to Good ID about the intersection between good digital ID and broader socio-political change. Read more in <a href="https://www.good-id.org/en/articles/everything-connected-making-good-id-matter/">Everything Is Connected: Making Good ID Matter</a>.

Eric Noggle, Senior Research Director, on Making the "Good ID" Movement Matter

Open Society Foundations

IDs for Inclusion

The event, “<a href="https://www.unsgsa.org/resources/news/unsgsa-queen-maxima-world-leaders-participate-unga/">Financial Inclusion for Development: Building on 10 Years of Progress</a>,” included the participation of António Guterres, UN Secretary-General; David Malpass, President of the World Bank; Melinda Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation; Dan Schulman, President and CEO of PayPal; and Ajay Banga, President and CEO of Mastercard.

Watch Mayada ask Queen Maxima about measuring financial inclusion's progress within the framework of the SDGs, and how financial inclusion contributes to achieving the SDGs by 2030. Queen Maxima is the <a href="https://www.unsgsa.org/">United Nations Secretary General's Special Advocate for Inclusive Finance for Development</a>.

More video coverage of the event can be found <a href="http://webtv.un.org/search/financial-inclusion-for-development-building-on-10-years-of-progress/6089500721001/?term=finance%20for%20development&amp;lan=english&amp;sort=date">here</a>.

&nbsp;

CFI Managing Director Asks Queen Maxima About Financial Inclusion's Role in the Sustainable Development Goals

Financial Inclusion Week 2019

Trends

Bansal, the <a href="https://www.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/about/what-we-do/the-smart-campaign">Smart Campaign</a>'s Senior Director in South and Southeast Asia, notes that the problem over-indebtedness is more severe in the island country than elsewhere.

She also points out that the government's decision to write off business loans of up to 100,000 rupees falls short.

"One-off measures will not do, says Ms Bansal: Sri Lanka needs properly enforced rules that prevent over-indebtedness and ensure fair treatment of borrowers."

Read the <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2019/08/15/microfinance-is-driving-many-sri-lankan-borrowers-to-despair">full article</a> (soft paywall).

In The Economist: Hema Bansal on Over-Indebtedness in Sri Lanka

The Smart Campaign

South Asia

Sri Lanka

Consumer Protection

Over-indebtedness

Barres's questions that Libra's developers should consider when innovating for the new cryptocurrency are:
<ul>
 	<li>What would data privacy agreements look like if we wanted them to be understandable, fair and with an option to opt out?</li>
 	<li>How would algorithms that did not discriminate be set up?</li>
 	<li>How might fully transparent, low-cost and high-quality products and services that truly solve problems be brought to bear?</li>
</ul>
Read the <a href="https://www.euromoney.com/article/b1g0hvpnhqmyg0/cryptocurrency-facebook39s-libra-is-this-how-we-get-to-responsible-fintech">full article in Euromoney</a>.

In Euromoney: Smart Campaign's Isabelle Barres Poses Questions About Libra

Appropriate Product Design and Delivery

Responsible Digital Finance

The <a href="https://www.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/about/what-we-do/the-smart-campaign/">Smart Campaign</a>'s senior director discussed the motivation behind the survey and forthcoming report with <a href="https://www.newtimes.co.rw/">The New Times</a>, a leading Rwandan news provider.

“We want all stakeholders to understand the actual experiences and concerns of the clients they are serving, protecting or advocating for, because there hasn't been a comprehensive survey underpinning the conduct of this digital financial service before,” <a href="https://content.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/people/alexandra-rizzi/">Rizzi</a> said.

Fraud was a "major problem" for about 40 percent of respondents (with 10 percent falling victim themselves), and while nearly 90 percent trust mobile money services, that trust extends to specific services, namely person-to-person (P2P) transfers. There are approximately 11 million mobile money users in Rwanda.

The report will be available for download on this site in the coming weeks. The results were discussed at a workshop of regulators in the Rwandan capital Kigali in March and will be discussed at the <a href="https://sptf.info/annual-meetings/2019-summit-inclusive-digital-future">Inclusive Digital Future Summit</a> in Nairobi in June 2019.

Read the<a href="https://www.newtimes.co.rw/business/mobile-money-services-enjoy-public-confidence-fraud-remains-threat-survey-reveals"> full article</a> and learn more about the <a href="http://smartcampaign.org/tools-a-resources/1075">Client Voices Project</a>.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

In The New Times: Smart Campaign's Alex Rizzi Interviewed About Client Voices Project Survey in Rwanda

Rwanda

Sub-Saharan Africa

Client Treatment

Fraud

This <a href="https://soundcloud.com/user-273615244/frt-episode-28-digital-customer-journey">episode</a> of the "FRT" podcast focuses on how digital customer journeys are enabling financial institutions to reach underserved segments in a sustainable manner. IIF’s Conan French host Rhyne and Amin Khairy to discuss the upcoming CFI-IIF paper “Charting the Customer Journey in the Digital Age.”

Rhyne discusses the persistent challenges for digital inclusion and the importance of having a “tech-touch” balance at certain stages of the customer journey.

They also discuss the potential gain in operational efficiencies for financial institutions and the positive impact digitization has on unbanked customers and provide real-life examples of digital customer journeys in various stages: pre-onboarding, onboarding and continued use.

"We're finding that the countries that are making it easy to onboard are those with a good national ID program," Rhyne said. "Having a very clear and simple to use national ID that's easily connected electronically is probably the most important thing."

Rhyne also notes that understanding the unique financial lives of lower income segments is crucial to digitization and different from transitioning banked populations from analog to digital.

Browse more <a href="https://www.iif.com/Innovation/FRT-Podcast">FRT podcast episodes</a>.

&nbsp;

IIF Podcast Features Elisabeth Rhyne Discussing the Digital Customer Journey

Human Centered Design

Delivery Channels

“Historically, we've talked about homeownership as the number one path to building wealth. Well, I think that small business has been the second way to build wealth,” said Luz Urrutia, CEO of Accion Opportunity Fund, a California-based community development financial institution and community advocacy organization. “We need to focus more resources on rebuilding minority small businesses. Because that is going to help put people back to work and eliminate the systemic racism that we all know is there.”

Luz Urrutia, CEO of <a href="https://www.googleadservices.com/pagead/aclk?sa=L&amp;ai=DChcSEwjIw-j-kf_uAhUr9uMHHb_FBo0YABAAGgJ5bQ&amp;ae=2&amp;ohost=www.google.com&amp;cid=CAESP-D2gzTiFG8onureUeY5Wu3B1Jb4SX6E_uSk2hZCQjN9t0tDDGeTUhL8gjDZj29Z6aYaVaDC7vf8iWZusTURMQ&amp;sig=AOD64_30FFuISkBBUmKJt6kx8xZjsH099A&amp;q&amp;adurl&amp;ved=2ahUKEwj5v-H-kf_uAhUTGFkFHaSBCpQQ0Qx6BAgDEAE" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion Opportunity Fund</a>, is quoted in <a href="https://www.americanbanker.com/news/the-second-way" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">this article from American Banker.</a>

'The second way' to close the wealth gap

Dvara KGFS announced that it has won 'Technology for Financial Inclusion' award at the Inclusive Finance India Awards 2020.

In a press release, the Chennai-based NBFC said the award was presented to it in recognition for the robust technology offering a suite of financial services and products for the underserved section of the society and their operational excellence over the last year.

<a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/money-and-banking/dvara-kgfs-bags-technology-for-financial-inclusion-award/article33696487.ece" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Hindu BusinessLine has reported</a> that Accion portfolio partner Dvara KGFS has won an award at Inclusive Finance India 2020.

Dvara KGFS bags ‘Technology for Financial Inclusion’ award

<a href="https://www.pula-advisors.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Pula</a>, a Kenyan insurtech startup that specialises in digital and agricultural insurance to derisk millions of smallholder farmers across Africa, has closed a Series A investment of $6 million.
The round was led by Pan-African early-stage venture capital firm,<a href="https://tlcomcapital.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer"> TLcom Capital</a>, with participation from nonprofit <a href="https://www.womensworldbanking.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Women’s World Banking</a>. The raise comes after Pula closed $1 million in seed investment from Rocher Participations with support from <a href="https://www.accion.org/how-we-work/invest/accion-venture-lab?gclid=Cj0KCQiA3smABhCjARIsAKtrg6LSfujL_lY9bmI5wqMdr1KNUENpuANUuBaesL1WzZVSuz5DfQR6qiUaAs8aEALw_wcB" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion Venture Lab</a>, Omidyar Network and several angel investors in 2018.

<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/25/kenyan-insurtech-startup-pula-raises-6m-series-a-led-by-tlcom-capital/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion portfolio company Pula is featured in TechCrunch</a> for securing further investment funding.

Kenyan insurtech startup Pula raises $6M Series A to derisk smallholder farmers across Africa

The Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth has always focused on connecting MSMEs to the networks that power the modern economy, including financial services and capital, markets and supply chains, digital platforms, investors and mentors.

With our global partner Accion, we helped financial services providers in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Indonesia, Mexico and Nigeria leverage digital tools to support underserved micro and small businesses, including reimagining group lending in a socially distant world, enhancing digital channels and implementing remote customer service.

<a href="https://businessfightspoverty.org/2020-hindsight-to-2021-foresight-driving-the-inclusive-digitization-of-msmes/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion was mentioned in this article</a> by Business Fights Poverty which features leadership insights from <a href="https://www.accion.org/mastercard-and-accion-partnering-for-inclusive-growth#:~:text=Mastercard%20and%20Accion%20have%20worked,solutions%20that%20meet%20hyperlocal%20needs.&amp;text=The%20Mastercard%20Center%20for%20Inclusive%20Growth%20helped%20fund%20Accion's%20advisory,digital%20solutions%20for%20its%20clients." target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">our partner, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth.</a>

2020 Hindsight to 2021 Foresight: Driving the Inclusive Digitization of MSMEs

President-elect <a class="rollover-people-link" href="https://thehill.com/people/joe-biden" data-nid="188332">Joe Biden</a> has nominated Isabel Guzman to lead the Small Business Administration at a time when more than two million, or 15 percent, of the nation’s small businesses have closed due to COVID-19.

<a href="https://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/politics/533387-small-businesses-are-in-crisis-heres-how-isabel-guzman-can-make" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more from Accion Opportunity Fund's Luz Urrutia in The Hill.</a>

Small businesses are in crisis — here's how Isabel Guzman can make a difference as SBA chief

Founded in 2014 by Sanjay Sharma and Vikram Jetley, Gurugram-based Aye Finance aims to address this problem by enabling financial inclusion for micro-enterprises through tech-based processes to build credit insights.

"We have disrupted the status quo with innovative credit assessment methods that do not rely on traditional business documentation and methods. We have leveraged the advancement in data analytics and technology to not only make sound risk assessments but also simplify the lending process, reduce their borrowing costs, and enhance customer experience," says Sanjay.

Accion portfolio partner Aye Finance is featured <a href="https://yourstory.com/smbstory/msme-lending-startup-aye-finance-micro-enterprise-financing" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">in this article from YourStory.</a>

Why this MSME lending startup believes it can grow big by lending to micro-enterprises

When we began exploring how to apply a gender lens to <a href="https://www.accion.org/how-we-work/invest/accion-venture-lab" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion Venture Lab</a>'s impact investing strategy, early last year, we quickly realized that there are many ways to do it. Some available resources <a href="https://ssir.org/articles/entry/gender_lens_investing_strategies_for_2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">discuss high-level considerations</a> and others outline <a href="https://www.calvertimpactcapital.org/storage/documents/calvert-impact-capital-gender-report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">tactical ways to incorporate GLI</a>. But if you are anything like us, you scoured the same resources and still struggled to know where to start.

Accion Venture Lab's <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/shannon-dwyer" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Shannon Dwyer</a> and <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/tahira-dosani" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Tahira Dosani</a> contributed this piece to the Stanford Social Innovation Review. <a href="https://ssir.org/articles/entry/how_to_begin_considering_a_gender_lens_investing_strategy" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more on their website</a>.

How to Begin Considering a Gender Lens Investing Strategy

After going through Y Combinator’s Summer batch, Henry announced today that it has raised $1.5 million in seed funding in a round led by <a class="crunchbase-link" href="https://crunchbase.com/organization/venture-lab" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-type="organization" data-entity="venture-lab">Accion Venture Lab, </a> Emles Venture Partners and Noveus VC. There were also a number of edtech angel investors from Latin American that participated in the round.

<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2020/12/03/henry-picks-up-cash-to-be-a-lambda-school-for-latin-america/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in TechCrunch.</a>

Henry picks up cash to be a Lambda School for Latin America

Agriculture fintech company <a href="https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/terramagna" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">TerraMagna</a> raised $2 million in seed funding for risk mitigation, providing farmers in Brazil access to working capital.

<a href="https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/onevc" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ONEVC</a> led the round and was joined by <a href="https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/maya-capital-56b2" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">MAYA Capital</a>, <a href="https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/venture-lab" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion Venture Lab</a> and a group of angel investors. In total, TerraMagna has raised $2.7 million since the company was founded in 2017, <a href="https://www.crunchbase.com/person/bernardo-fabiani" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Bernardo Fabiani</a>, executive director and co-founder of TerraMagna, told Crunchbase News.

<a href="https://news.crunchbase.com/news/exclusive-terramagna-sows-2m-seed-for-brazilian-farm-lending/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in Crunchbase News.</a>

Exclusive: TerraMagna Sows $2M Seed For Brazilian Farm Lending

"On October 7, 2020, our father, Joseph Hoffer Blatchford, passed away peacefully. We, his three children, Andrea, Nicholas, and Antonia, and our mother Winnie, were by his side. There are many things that our dad may be publicly remembered for: his international development work as the founder of Accion, his service as Director of the Peace Corps, and his professional life as an attorney."

<a href="https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/washingtonpost/obituary.aspx?n=joseph-blatchford&amp;pid=197135300&amp;fhid=2167" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read the obituary of Accion's founder Joseph Blatchford in The Washington Post. </a>

Joseph Blatchford (1934 - 2020)

Last week’s virtual <a href="https://www.africatechsummit.com/kigali/online/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Africa Tech Summit Connects</a> event brought together a host of African tech investors to discuss trends, challenges and opportunities in the wake of COVID-19, and all agreed that the way they do business has been altered by the pandemic.

For those that wanted to continue investing throughout and could not carry out physical due diligence, there was a need to adapt. <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/ashley-lewis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ashley Lewis</a>, senior investment officer focused on the Africa region with <a href="https://www.accion.org/how-we-work/invest/accion-venture-lab" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Accion Venture Lab</a>, said her organisation did its first fully digital due diligence process in May.

<a href="https://disrupt-africa.com/2020/11/02/how-tech-investors-in-africa-coped-with-the-changes-enforced-by-covid-19/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in Disrupt Africa.</a>

How tech investors in Africa coped with the changes enforced by COVID-19

The SAIS Development Roundtable hosted <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/michael-schlein" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Michael Schlein</a> for a conversation about the future of financial inclusion in the face of the COVID-19 pandemic. Mr. Schlein is the President and CEO of Accion, a nonprofit organization dedicated to giving the underserved access to the financial tools they need to improve their lives.

<a href="http://www.saisperspectives.com/idev-roundtable-series/2020/10/30/2020-2021-idev-roundtable-a-conversation-with-michael-schlein-about-the-future-of-financial-inclusion" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in Perspectives.</a>

2020-2021 IDEV roundtable: A conversation with Michael Schlein about the future of financial inclusion

Amidst an immensely challenging operating environment, more than 400 fintech startups working to improve the accessibility, affordability, and convenience of financial services for underserved populations applied to <a href="https://www.inclusivefintech50.com/?utm_source=techcrunch&amp;utm_medium=sponsoredarticle&amp;utm_campaign=launch" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Inclusive Fintech 50</a>. The initiative identifies, assesses, and elevates the most promising early-stage inclusive fintechs in advanced and emerging markets through a competitive process led by an <a href="https://www.inclusivefintech50.com/2020-judging-panel" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">independent panel of 35 experienced fintech leaders and VCs</a> including leaders from Plaid, Jumo, SOSV, and ADB Ventures. Inclusive Fintech 50 was founded by MetLife Foundation and Visa, with support from Accion and IFC, and additional funding from BlackRock and Jersey Overseas Aid &amp; Comic Relief.

<a href="https://techcrunch.com/sponsor/inclusive-fintech-50/50-fintech-startups-driving-financial-inclusion-and-resilience/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in TechCrunch.</a>

50 fintech startups driving financial inclusion and resilience

As president and CEO-Elect, Miebach understands that ending gender discrimination isn’t just a matter of basic human rights — it’s eradicating a barrier to accelerating sustainable development.

Outside of Mastercard, Miebach is part of the Accion board of directors, providing support to 2 billion adults across the world lacking financial services. In 2018, MasterCard and Accion launched a partnership, bringing Mastercard’s worldwide networks and resources together to transform millions of underserved micro and small businesses while focusing on the cultivation of female entrepreneurs.

<a href="https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/the-heroes-top-50-advocate-executive-role-models-2020-230126397.html?_guc_consent_skip=1601042683" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in Yahoo! Finance UK.</a>

The HERoes top 50 advocate executive role models 2020

An Investment Officer at Accion Venture Lab, Nigeria, <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/ashley-lewis" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Ashley Lewis</a>, noted that by formalising their enterprises, African farmers would attract valuable investments. “There is an opportunity to create value, have exits and have a venture capital story in agriculture,” she said.

<a href="https://thenationonlineng.net/experts-seek-increased-investments-in-africas-agric-devt/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Read more in The Nation.</a>

Experts seek increased investments in Africa’s agric devt

This episode of podcast <a href="https://twitter.com/posi2ive?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">posi2ive</a> features Accion Venture Lab's <a href="https://www.accion.org/bio/matthew-schaar" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Matt Schaar</a>. <a href="https://www.breaker.audio/posi2ive/e/70924804" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Listen here.</a>

Tip of the Spear in Fintech

"Fintech’s play in the <a href="https://m.economictimes.com/topic/rural-economy">rural economy</a> is driven around Aadhaar for transactions where the biggest digitization has happened during Covid," says Sasidhar N. Thumuluri, CEO and MD of Sub-K, a rural-play Fintech. The value lost in regular transactions has been made up for through the jump in the number of people using digital platforms, he adds.

Early adopters of digital banking are emerging in rural areas and there is an increased willingness among microfinance customers to stay digital, according to Thumuluri. "The journey has started and the customers will quickly catch up," he says. Sub-K expects 25-35 per cent of its MFI collections to happen in the digital format in the next couple of years.

The digital push is not the only sign of a shift towards the rural economy. For Mukherjea, the recovery being seen in auto and consumer durables shows a fundamental shift in credit disbursals towards smaller towns and villages. "This could sustain over two to three years and that will give the recovery a specific shape and pattern which could make it far more sustainable than perhaps many of us are fearing at this juncture," he said.

<a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/indicators/rural-focused-lenders-a-big-play-for-indias-revival-story/articleshow/77779725.cms" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Economic Times features insight</a> from the CEO of Accion portfolio partner, Sub-K.

Rural-focused lenders a big play for India’s revival story

Going cashless may seem like a simple issue of things like no more cash in birthday cards to piggy banks being a thing of the past, but the issues go deeper, the divides that a cashless society may cause could be a turning point.

Mayada El-Zoghbi, Managing Director for the <a class="color-link" title="https://www.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/" href="https://www.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" data-ga-track="ExternalLink:https://www.centerforfinancialinclusion.org/" aria-label="Center for Financial Inclusion">Center for Financial Inclusion</a> (CFI), an independent U.S. think tank, isn’t thrilled for this future when she spoke to Reuters: “A move to a cashless society will not benefit all groups equally. The groups that are most likely to be excluded will be women, rural communities, and the elderly. In some countries, like the U.S. where a large part of the low-income segment does not have a bank account, pushing out these payments has been a challenge,” she said.

<a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/paularmstrongtech/2020/08/26/what-a-cashless-society-really-means-for-you/#c813e5c55539" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">In this article, Forbes features the Managing Director of CFI</a>, an independent think tank housed at Accion.