Publications
Sep 11, 2019
This publication is the result of a survey on Very Small Entreprises (VSEs) in the Arab World by the IFC - International Finance Corporation. While this report documents where the sector stands today in terms of serving the VSE segment, it also offers lessons learned by microfinance institutions, who have already upscaled to serve VSEs from the...
Sep 04, 2019
The 3rd Annual Americas Alternative Finance Industry Report aims to provide readers with a snapshot of the rapidly changing alternative finance landscape across the Americas at a macro level as well as on a country-by-country basis. This empirical study provides independent, systematic, and reliable data about the size, growth, and diversity of...
Aug 29, 2019
With the growing recognition of women entrepreneurs’ contribution to economic growth, there is need to understand the state of their operations in India. This report, by the IFC, aims to assess the financing gap through a hybrid approach, including both secondary estimation and primary data collection, and identify the key characteristics of women...
Aug 28, 2019
Digital financial services (DFS) are defined by the Alliance for Financial Inclusion as “the broad range of financial services accessed and delivered through digital channels, including payments, credit, savings, remittances and insurance.” The integration of new digital channels for transactions, information flows and data capture, and identity...
Aug 27, 2019
For Zambia’s digital financial services (DFS) industry, 2018 saw growth in the number of active DFS account users, growth in the number of agents nationwide and growth in the number of products available to customers. These indicators of growth in the industry are findings in the Annual Provider Survey (APS), which UNCDF has conducted for over...
Aug 27, 2019
The IMF and the World Bank Group launched at the 2018 Annual Meetings the Bali Fintech Agenda (BFA), a framework of high-level issues that countries should consider in their own domestic fintech policy discussions. The BFA is organized around a set of twelve elements aimed at helping member countries to harness the benefits and opportunities of...
Aug 26, 2019
This paper shows that taxation on mobile phone airtime and financial transactions may not expand the tax base significantly but, rather, may reverse the gains on retail electronic payments and financial inclusion. A higher tax rate on low-level retail electronic transactions mostly levied on low-income earners that are sensitive to transaction...
Aug 21, 2019
The report contextualises the role of data analytics in the ongoing digital revolution and its potential for SME performance, including for enhancing SME productivity. It presents evidence on the use of data analytics in SMEs, discusses main internal and external barriers to the use of data analytics by SMEs, and illustrates policy approaches to...
Aug 19, 2019
According to a World Bank report “Profiting from Parity : Unlocking the Potential of Women's Business in Africa,” launched last March, women entrepreneurs make or are obliged to make different decisions than men because of gender-specific constraints. As a result, the report notes that, on average, women-owned firms post profits that are 34 %...
Aug 16, 2019
This CGAP’s recent paper, "The Role of Financial Services in Youth Education and Employment," makes the case that financial services can play an important role in improving educational opportunities to build job skills among people ages 15 to 24. Read the paper here .