Facts and figures tell us the full story of financial and social results and allow us to compare that story to those of our peers. The ATLAS data platform is a new initiative to help tell those stories, consolidating data on pricing, client protection, and social and financial performance.

The excitement around fintech in India is palpable. Many see it as a market-led solution to the policy objective of financial inclusion. Fintech regulation must therefore be designed carefully to prevent and mitigate risks while also preserving the potential for financial inclusion. 

Recent excitement over the investment potential of edufinance will remind long-time impact investors of similar growth predictions for microfinance not too long ago. Taking advantage of the huge pool of hard–won experience built by the microfinance sector over 30-plus years can help the edufinance sector avoid missteps and greatly accelerate its growth and success.

Laura Foschi, head of ADA, talks about the focus of this year’s African Microfinance Week and how ADA views impact and partnerships.

Jean-Marc Debricon of Alterfin discusses impact investing in rural Africa as the region prepares for African Microfinance Week. Held in Burkina Faso from 21 to 25 October 2019, this major regional conference provides a unified African platform for discussion of microfinance issues. ​

Leading microinsurance providers discuss how to solve issues with distribution, the multitude of risks farmers face and uptake.

While the financial inclusion sector has changed drastically over the last twenty years, a familiar challenge has returned: information asymmetry. So MIX’s strategic shifts to refocus on data initiatives in fintech, digital and agricultural finance - and other frontier sectors to come - are a welcome development for the entire financial inclusion community.

Organizations implementing the graduation approach need tools to manage their different program components effectively. Mobile and cloud technology are helping them to support poor women on their path out of poverty. 

Women’s entrepreneurship is on the rise globally, though it still lags behind men’s in most countries. The challenge is how to get female businesses out of a survivalist mode and onto a pathway of growth. 

Informal Savings Mechanisms (ISMs) have long been important to many people’s day-to-day money management across Africa. But as formal financial services become much more prevalent in the region, what will happen to these ISMs? Will they fall by the wayside as the digital revolution takes over?