Archive for the ‘Mobile Banking’ Category

By Souren Ghosal, Microfinance Focus, September 16, 2010 : There is no doubt that the most popular mandate in developing countries is to outreach poor by creating employment opportunities and providing financial support to the poor through state interventions.  Obviously such intermediation often fail to reach the poor as these intermediaries floated by the state are loaded with bureaucrats and politicians who are more prone to ... Full story

By Martina Rani Microfinance Focus, Feb. 7, 2010: The developing countries strive to give financial access to the poor and vulnerable groups for poverty reduction and social cohesion through their financial inclusion projects which aim at delivery of financial services at an affordable cost to them. People in developing countries have less options for transferring money and accessing banking services, because there is less deployed formal ... Full story

MIcrofinance Focus, Dec. 7, 2009: MoneyGram International, a leading global money transfer company, announced on Monday that two more banks-Abhyudaya Co-op Bank Ltd and Thane Janata Sahakari Bank Ltd (TJSB) -- will soon be offering MoneyGram money transfer services. With these, 18 Indian banks offer MoneyGram's services. Abhyudaya and Thane Janata Sahakari banks are MoneyGram's first urban co-operatives, and they extend the company's reach into smaller ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Nov. 27, 2009: Papua New Guinea presents interesting challenges and opportunities for mobile banking, said a recently released report from the UN's Pacific Financial Inclusion Program (PFIP) and the IFC. The report on “Building a mobile money distribution network in Papua New Guinea” found that there is great demand for a system that enhances cash safety, including mobile phone transfers and a means to ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Nov. 24, 2009: The State Bank of Pakistan and the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority have agreed to introduce a unified regulatory framework for enhancing mobile banking in the country. "It has been decided to set up a Joint Regulatory Committee," said a joint statement released after a meeting held at SBP, Karachi recently between Syed Salim Raza, Governor, State Bank of Pakistan and Dr Mohammed ... Full story

By Naagesh Naaraayana Microfinance Focus, Nov. 23, 2009: With the right market conditions, branchless banking in microfinance, including mobile phone banking, could be the primary channel for poor people to get basic financial services by the year 2020, said a CGAP report titled, “Scenarios for Branchless Banking in 2020.” The report from CGAP and the U.K.’s Department for International Development (DFID) is part of a six-month ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Nov. 23, 2009: Pakistan's Tameer Microfinance Bank, in association with Telenor Pakistan has announced launch of Money Transfer, as part of its "easypaisa" product line. Money Transfer is a secure, easy and convenient way of sending and receiving domestic remittances through "easypaisa" outlets. Users will have the convenience to access the service from more than 4,000 "easypaisa" merchants, and the bank hopes the figure ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Oct. 8, 2009: Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, former President of India, will formally launch the REPCO Bank co-branded Commonwealth Card at a function to be held at the Centenary Auditorium of University of Madras in Chennai next week. Commonwealth Micro Finance (India) Limited (CMFIL) is ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Sept. 23, 2009: India's mobile solutions provider 'mChek' has been awarded the TiE-Lumis entrepreneurial excellence award. The award is to encourage startups which have made a mark in the industry. It has also developed mobile banking and payments technology for microfinance applications and conducted a pilot project with Grameen Koota, an MFI in Bangalore. mCheck had earlier bagged the Global Red Herring 100 Award in ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Sept. 11, 2009: IDEA Cellular, one of the leading Indian telecom operators has partnered with Reuters Market Light, part of Thomson Reuters, the leading global information company, to launch a unique product targeted at rural subscribers. ‘Krishi Voucher’, the innovative agricultural information service developed by Reuters Market Light, is now made available for the large farmer community on the IDEA network, in Maharashtra & Goa circle. Full story

By Naagesh Naaraayana Microfinance Focus, Sept. 8, 2009: Dharani Mahila Macs, a microfinance institution in Andhra Pradesh, has decided to introduce first Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)-based Management Information and Credit Monitoring System with technology back up by Hyderabad-based Elitser IT Solutions. The PDA, a hand-held device, will help to ... Full story

Microfinance Focus, Aug. 19, 2009: Nokia India has announced plans to roll out a unique microfinancing offer in 12 states to make mobility more accessible to rural markets and notably, to the female population in rural India. The company has recently concluded a successful pilot in partnership with a leading microfinance institution in the rural areas of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, said a press release. Under this pilot, an easy payment scheme was offered on handsets to women consumers at a weekly installment of Rs100 over 25 weeks. Conducted across over 2,500 villages, the pilot received a heartwarming response and received over 27,500 applications, the release added. Full story

Microfinance Focus, Aug. 14, 2009: BizEvents.Asia is organising the "Mobiles and Money India" conference in Mumbai on November 23 and 24 to focus on strategies for increasing the access to financial services and products to India’s under-banked people. The conference aims at bringing the mobile payments and payments ‘ecosystem’ -- mobile operators, banks, microfinance institutions and non-governmental organisations and thrid-party vendors -- together. It will discuss the strategy, innovation and emerging business models for mobile banking and payments in India. Full story

Microfinance Focus,  Aug. 10, 2009: Financial Information Network and Operations Ltd. (FINO) has launched FINO-MITRA, a comprehensive package of mobile-enabled banking solutions to address the needs of microfinance sector or the huge unbanked population. FINO’s new product, MITRA, enables enrolment as well as banking transactions through the use of mobile technology, increasings capability at reduced costs, says a press release. Full story