High repayment rates, technology solutions, and new research tell us that it’s time for the financial industry to think about refugees.

The uptake of digital remittances has been slower than hoped. Are we on the edge of a rapid revolution, or will the switch happen gradually, over many years? And is digital origination a key to driving down remittance costs? 

Zari is a six-year-old girl who goes to school, skateboards and learns about making healthy choices – and is the most recognized children’s television character in Afghanistan. She is featured on Sesame Garden, the nation’s version of Sesame Street. She is also changing minds around the acceptability of girls’ education in a country with some of the lowest rates of girls’ primary school attendance in the world.

India’s Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) is the world’s first national biometric-based payments system. In the two years since its launch, AePS has revealed both benefits and challenges as it seeks to expand financial inclusion. Grameen Foundation India has experienced these directly as we work to scale digital financial services and financial education. How does AePS work? AePS was designed to allow individuals to conduct financial transactions across any participating bank, using just three inputs:

Until now, reliable data on the financial lives of smallholder families has been scarce. Three new tools from CGAP, Insight2Impact, MIX and One Acre Fund shed light on this massive untapped market for financial services.

According to many in the impact investment industry, microfinance is dead - yesterday's solution at best. Fortunately for people at the bottom of the pyramid (BOP), no one told microfinance that it has died. But where is it going now and what do MFIs need to do to stay relevant?

The latest Findex shows global progress on access to financial services, but it also illustrates challenges in reaching marginalized groups and increasing usage.

A case study with two financial service providers in Burkina Faso explores seven risks involved in bringing savings groups into digital finance.

Study finds that access to formal savings and loans played a critical role in coping with disaster 

The opportunities and risks of fintech are front of mind for financial sector policymakers these days, and many are looking to China for inspiration and guidance. What can we learn from the Chinese experience?