infoDev.org/m-banking
Activity File
m-Banking for the Poor
Mobile-Enabled Financial Services
Summary
As part of the broader work program on ICT and rural livelihoods, infoDev is exploring the potential to expand financial services to the poor and rural communities by leveraging ICT. In particular, the proliferation of mobile communications in developing countries has created the potential to bring a wide range of financial services to an entirely new customer base. To help our donors and the development community at-large better understand the potential of this emerging service, infoDev has developed a comprehensive research program.
Background / Terms of Reference
infoDev began its work in this area through a joint report with the GSM Association (GSMA) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) entitled "Micro-Payment Systems and their Application to Mobile Networks," which assessed the Philippine experience and the key drivers for enabling this service. Currently, over 3.5 million people in the Philipppines are using a mobile-enabled financial service that allows them to transfer money domestically and internationally over the two major mobile networks.
This joint report along with a recent DfID report on “The Enabling Environment for Mobile Banking in Africa” provided the basis for a joint infoDev and DFID Knowledge Map on mobile-enabled financial servcies (m-Banking), which was recently completed. The knowledge map reviews the existing literature on mobile-enabled financial services to help the development community more clearly define the "knowledge gaps" and the "targeted interventions" required to facilitate the expansion of these services.
The initial findings from the knowledge map were presented at a joint infoDev and CGAP workshop on Expanding Financial Services to the Poor: The Role of ICT held on June 9, 2006 at the World Bank in Washington, DC. A report from the workshop captures the key points raised by presenters on how emerging ICT-enabled delivery channels for financial services are deployed, including the various business models and technologies, as well as the primary impediments to expanding these services and how the development community could address some of them. Presentations for the workshop can be accessed here.
In addition to these completed activities, infoDev has commissioned a report on Remittances and m-Banking, which builds on our earlier work in the Philippines. This report will define how mobile-enabled remittances work in the Philippines and explore the potential cost savings, as well as the challenges to scaling up such operations. The report will be published at the end of 2006.