A Reader on Financial Inclusion

A Reader on Financial Inclusion PDF Author: Moin Qazi
Publisher: Notion Press
ISBN:
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 272

Book Description
The official emphasis on financial inclusion keeps re-emerging in policy discourses and among bankers, who are critical of its architecture, despite the earnestness and enthusiasm in pursuing it. In the face of initial bursts of euphoria, the movement develops fatigue for commercial reasons. The agenda regularly falls by the side –first from discussion tables and then from policy engagement. Banks face many constraints; the high cost of driving financial inclusion in remote geographies is not sustainable. The main reason for the earlier failures was that the goals were more idealistic than realistic However, in the last few years, that agenda appears to have gained significant traction even as it is still going through the honeymoon period in the Jan-Dhan avatar. People have wholeheartedly embraced it and see great promise in it. But they are still not entirely convinced of it achieving its touted potential. Access to suitable finances is critical in overcoming the complex everyday realities for those living in penny economies. It can allow them to move out of poverty or build resilience to absorb a financial shock without sinking deeper into debt. Financial services increase savings, remove barriers to credit, ease the burden of debt, and help people weather unexpected tragedies.

Financial Inclusion at the Bottom of the Pyramid

Financial Inclusion at the Bottom of the Pyramid PDF Author: Carol Realini
Publisher: FriesenPress
ISBN: 1460265521
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 128

Book Description
As incredible as it may seem in this hyper-connected, technologically advanced era, half the planet's population exist as "Financial nomads"-those who nourish and shelter themselves without using traditional banking services. While the wealthy live at the top of a metaphorical pyramid, taking financial security and banking services for granted, there are billions of people who struggle at the pyramid's base in an exhausting state of financial exclusion and insecurity. Times are changing rapidly, but despite global uncertainty, technology has the capacity to reach and equip people in all walks of life. Advances in communications have reconfigured the ease with which we interact with our money-and these advances can provide innovative financial services to the unbanked and underserved around the world. Financial inclusion for all is indeed within our reach, and with this conviction, authors Karl Mehta and Carol Realini propose a vision for a better world and a blueprint to get there....

Banking the World

Banking the World PDF Author: Robert Cull
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262544016
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 519

Book Description
Experts report on the latest research on extending access to financial services to the 2.5 billion adults around the world who lack it. About 2.5 billion adults, just over half the world's adult population, lack bank accounts. If we are to realize the goal of extending banking and other financial services to this vast “unbanked” population, we need to consider not only such product innovations as microfinance and mobile banking but also issues of data accuracy, impact assessment, risk mitigation, technology adaptation, financial literacy, and local context. In Banking the World, experts take up these topics, reporting on new research that will guide both policy makers and scholars in a broader push to extend financial markets. The contributors consider such topics as the complexity of surveying people about their use of financial services; evidence of the impact of financial services on income; the occasional negative effects of financial services on poor households, including disincentives to work and overindebtedness; and tools for improving access such as nontraditional credit scores, financial incentives for banking, and identification technologies that can dramatically reduce loan default rates.

The Exclusionary Politics of Digital Financial Inclusion

The Exclusionary Politics of Digital Financial Inclusion PDF Author: Serena Natile
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 0429603770
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 237

Book Description
Focusing on Kenya’s path-breaking mobile money project M-Pesa, this book examines and critiques the narratives and institutions of digital financial inclusion as a development strategy for gender equality, arguing for a politics of redistribution to guide future digital financial inclusion projects. One of the most-discussed digital financial inclusion projects, M-Pesa facilitates the transfer of money and access to formal financial services via the mobile phone infrastructure and has grown at a phenomenal rate since its launch in 2007 to reach about 80 per cent of the Kenyan population. Through a socio-legal enquiry drawing on feminist political economy, law and development scholarship and postcolonial feminist debate, this book unravels the narratives and institutional arrangements that frame M-Pesa’s success while interrogating the relationship between digital financial inclusion and gender equality in development discourse. Natile argues that M-Pesa is premised on and regulated according to a logic of opportunity rather than a politics of redistribution, favouring the expansion of the mobile money market in preference to contributing to substantive gender equality via a redistribution of the revenue and funding deriving from its development. This book will be of particular interest to scholars and students in Global Political Economy, Socio-Legal Studies, Gender Studies, Law & Development, Finance and International Relations.

Inclusive Growth

Inclusive Growth PDF Author: Howard Thomas
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN: 1789737796
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 146

Book Description
The book outlines a journey from enabling models of government and business to strategies for creating both financial and social inclusion and entrepreneurism as mechanisms for sustainable and inclusive growth.

Financial Capability and Asset Building in Vulnerable Households

Financial Capability and Asset Building in Vulnerable Households PDF Author: Margaret Sherraden
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190238577
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 473

Book Description
Financial struggles of American families are headline news. In communities across the nation, families feel the pinch of stagnant and sometimes declining incomes. Many have not recovered from the Great Recession, when millions lost their homes and retirement savings. They are bombarded daily with vexing financial decisions: Which bills to pay? Where to cash checks? How to cover an emergency? How to improve a credit report? How to bank online? How to save for the future? Low- and moderate-income families have few places to turn for guidance on financial matters. Not many can afford to pay a financial advisor to help navigate an increasingly complex financial world. They do their best with advice from family and trusted individuals. Social workers, financial counselors, and human services professionals can help. As "first responders," they assist families and help in finding financial support from public and private sources. But these professionals are too often unprepared to address the full range of financial troubles of ordinary working families. Financial Capability and Asset Building in Vulnerable Households prepares social workers, financial counselors, and other human service professionals for financial practice with vulnerable families. Building on more than 20 years of research, the book sets the stage with key concepts, historical antecedents, and current financial challenges of families in America. It provides knowledge and tools to assist families in pressing financial circumstances, and offers a lifespan perspective of financial capability and environmental influences on financial behaviors and actions. Furthermore, the text details practice principles and skills for direct interventions, as well as for designing financial services and policy innovations. It is an essential resource for preparing the next generation of practitioners who can enable families to achieve economic security and development.

Africa Reader 2018: A continent full of potential

Africa Reader 2018: A continent full of potential PDF Author: European Investment Bank
Publisher: European Investment Bank
ISBN: 9286140339
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 563

Book Description
Africa is transforming itself. The continent stands ready to seize the opportunities arising from its young population, new technologies, new trade agreements and potential for productivity gains. However, the region needs a lot of help to fight deteriorating infrastructure, climate change, extreme weather events, social and political strife, persistent poverty, and the rising numbers of people leaving their homes to escape conflict or seek a better life. The European Investment Bank has been active in Africa for more than half a century, carrying out thousands of complex projects in all corners of the continent. We are concentrating even more on activities that create jobs and growth. We also are working hard on sustainable urbanisation, digital connectivity and gender equality.

Digital Financial Inclusion

Digital Financial Inclusion PDF Author: Peter Goldfinch
Publisher: Taylor & Francis
ISBN: 1040046053
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 140

Book Description
With the arrival of the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT), smartphones, real-time payments systems, plus FinTech activity, Financial Inclusion services can now be integrated into a country’s National Payment System (NPS), which means there should be no systemic barriers to transitioning the socio-economic pyramid, as actors build their financial status. This, however, is not the case. This book is a comprehensive guide to understanding the transition of financial services from cash-based to digital-based systems, with a focus on Financial Inclusion. It explores the success of Financial Inclusion programs in promoting economic activity and lifting people out of poverty. It does not concentrate on a single deployment or approach, rather, it takes a broader view. The book surveys the technology and infrastructure required to build digital payment systems, as well as the regulatory and governance frameworks that enable their operation, however, the major focus is on the incorporation of these financial services within communities in order to deliver social outcomes. The book opens the conversation, proposing a new method of measuring Financial Inclusion. It takes a critical but constructive look at the field over the last 20+ years and discusses the key learnings. It examines the Kenya mobile money approach to Financial Inclusion, compared with the Indian bank lead approach, and delivers a broad-based plan on how the programs can be more effective in the future. Financial Inclusion requires a pathway to progress, through a period of technology transformation. The foundation is provided by this book and the reader, on finishing it, will have a comprehensive appreciation of the subject matter.

Business Drivers in Promoting Digital Detoxification

Business Drivers in Promoting Digital Detoxification PDF Author: Grima, Simon
Publisher: IGI Global
ISBN:
Category : Computers
Languages : en
Pages : 377

Book Description
The rapid progression of the digital age has brought both benefits and drawbacks. While the convenience of constant connectivity and digital devices is undeniable, the increasing screen time poses health and well-being challenges. With a significant portion of the global population now regularly using the internet, concerns about issues like digital addiction, shorter attention spans, and lifestyle diseases have become urgent matters. Addressing these challenges and charting a sustainable path forward is imperative. Business Drivers in Promoting Digital Detoxification delves into contemporary initiatives across various industries that advocate for digital detox. This book showcases opportunities within this transformative trend, spanning from health and tourism to unexpected sectors. It not only highlights the necessity of digital detox for health but also reveals its potential as a gateway to innovative business ventures. Catering to academics, researchers, students, and professionals, this book serves as a guiding beacon in the complexities of the digital era. It not only clarifies the motivations behind the digital detox movement but also explores its implications. More than just insights, this book offers a roadmap to shape a healthier and sustainable future in our digitally connected world. Engage in this pivotal conversation, explore its pages, and gain the knowledge to drive meaningful change for yourself, your organization, and society as a whole.

Uncertainty and Challenges in Contemporary Economic Behaviour

Uncertainty and Challenges in Contemporary Economic Behaviour PDF Author: Ercan Özen
Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing
ISBN: 1800430973
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 235

Book Description
Every day presents new challenges as the face of global economics changes. In this first book in the Emerald Studies in Finance, Insurance, and Risk Management, expert editors and contributors come together to discuss global response to new uncertainty and challenges.