Lending to Cash-in Cash-out (Cico) Agents

Agent businesses serve as particularly compelling entry points into small business lending. Their ties with larger financial services and telecom sector ecosystem provide greater security and reduced risk than other small business segments. Investing in agent lending will also drive economic development critical to achieving the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

Lending to cash-in cash-out (CICO) agents in developing countries remains a vastly underserved market despite its investment potential. This report focuses on the agent lending landscape in nine diverse, low- and middle-income (LMIC) countries that represent mature and evolving markets to provide insights into the larger global opportunity.