Ministry of Economy and Finance undersecretary of state Ros Seilava told a news conference that the economic crisis instigated by COVID-19 had been the primary trigger for the emergency SME lending endeavours.

The aim of the additional financing is to help local businesses with disrupted cash flows sustain operations and maintain jobs.

This was a top-up loan of $4 million to support microfinance sector during challenging environment brought about by COVID-19 crisis.

Nepali missions abroad are verifying applicants’ status before recommending their names to the government to provide them airfare from Migrant Workers Welfare Fund.

The aim is to make early-stage fintechs more visible to investors and others who can help them grow and have a noticeable impact on the more than three billion financially underserved people.

In the current environment there has been significant growth in adoption of contactless payments, both globally and in India.

VISA surveyed 4,500 consumers and 2,000 small businesses in eight countries—the U.S., Canada, Brazil, Germany, Ireland, Hong Kong, Singapore and the U.A.E.—from 18 - 29 June 2020.

Asia Pacific, which accounts for a third of the global migrant workforce, is likely to face remittance losses of $31.4-54.3 billion due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in a report.

Latest data from the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) showed cash remittances coursed through banks declined by 6.4 percent to $11.55 billion from January to May compared to $12.35 billion in the same period last year.

Through a network of 23 branches and 63 active agents across the country, FINCA Malawi serves more than 70,000 clients offering individual and group loans, savings and insurance products specifically designed for low-income entrepreneurs.