Digitizing merchant payments in Bangladesh

Better placement of marketing materials can help boost usage of digital payments in small merchants. What are some other ways to drive usage? Read this IFC report that is based on feedback and learnings from early adopters of bKash in Bangladesh.

New Digital Business Model Opportunity for Remittances as Banks Close MTO Accounts?

Banks are closing MTO accounts as risks increase amid a shifting regulatory environment.

The Financial Action Task Force cautions on the use of virtual currencies

Is Cash the Enemy of Financial Inclusion?

The Better Than Cash Alliance, hosted by UNCDF, gathered with colleagues at the Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) Council of Governors Annual Meeting last month in Urubamba, Peru….

How Digital Finance Can Contribute to the G20 Agenda on Economic Growth

The Better Than Cash Alliance and the Gates Foundation propose digital financial services as a means for this growth to be broad-based and inclusive, especially for to women.

London Borough of Lewisham: Care leavers receive allowance via prepaid card

The London Borough of Lewisham is an inner-city district serving over 248,000 people.

When young people who have been placed in the Borough’s care leave it at the age of 18, they receiv…

At a Moment’s Notice: Mercy Corps Tests and Deploys an E-Voucher System for Crises in the DRC

The following is a guest post by Sara Murray, Electronic Payments Program Manager at Mercy Corps, a Better Than Cash Alliance member….

BTCA Becomes an Implementing Partner of the G20′s Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion

A Q&A with Dr. Ruth Goodwin-Groen on the Better Than Cash Alliance’s Important New Role…

BTCA Named as Implementing Partner of the G20’s GPFI

May 2014 newsletter, BTCA Named as Implementing Partner of the G20’s GPFI, Mercy Corps Deploys E-Voucher System for Crisis in the DRC, Women Micro-Entrepreneurs in Nigeria Save Using Mobile App, The Year of E-Money in the Philippines Concludes with a 20% Lift in Transactions, VIDEO: Successful E-Payments Programs Require Strong Communication Channels, Mobile Money is Quickly Taking Off in Côte d’Ivoire, Study Shows that G2P Digital Payments Have Impact, Pakistan: Millions of Unbanked Citizens to Gain Access to Financial Services, How to Design Electronic G2P Payments in Lower Income Countries, What Can We Learn From New Mobile Money Regulation in the DRC?

Electronic G2P Payments: Evidence from Four Lower-Income Countries

This CGAP Focus Note presents the evidence gained from a comprehensive study of the experiences in developing and implementing e-payment schemes linked to financial inclusion in four lower-i…

Women’s World Banking Joins the Better Than Cash Alliance

One Million Low-Income People to Reap Benefits of Digital Money…

Better Than Cash Alliance Recognized As Example for Effective Development

On April 15-16, 2014 the Better Than Cash Alliance presented at the First High Level Meeting for Effective Development Cooperation in Mexico City, Mexico. The meeting was organized by the Me…

Women’s World Banking Joins the Better Than Cash Alliance To Further Empower Women

Women need confidential and easily accessible financial services as well as control over their finances, and electronic payments bring these features to financial products.

First There Was Cash-for-Assets – Could WFP’s New E-Payments Model be Scaled Up Too?

Kenya has been hailed as one of the developing world’s leaders in electronic payments. So it should come as no surprise that a sparsely populated, dusty village 500 kilometres from Nairobi i…

Building State Capacity: Evidence from Biometric Smartcards in India

NBER Working Paper No. 19999
Issued in March 2014

Summary:

We evaluate the impact of biometrically-authenticated payments infrastructure (“Smartcards”) on beneficiaries of employm…

What Can Experiences in Haiti, Kenya, the Philippines & Uganda Teach Us About G2P & D2P E-Payments?

March 2014 newsletter, What Can Experiences in Haiti, Kenya, the Philippines & Uganda Teach Us About G2P & D2P E-Payments?, Remote communities in Ghana bank on mobiles, Does gender impact access to mobile financial services?

Electronic cash aid gives Rwandan refugees more options

As part of its commitments to enhance food security, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has introduced mobile phone facilitated cash transfers to feed the 14,500 refugees in Gihem…

Davos Shines a Light on Financial Inclusion Via Electronic Payments

World Economic Forum recognises electronic payments as a driver for financial inclusion…

Ethiopia scales up mobile and other digital finance services

Better Than Cash Alliance discusses digital financial strategy with government…