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FINANCIAL INCLUSION 2020

Recent FI2020 Publications

FI2020 Progress Report

(October 2015) In the FI2020 Progress Report, we present our assessment of progress toward global financial inclusion through the lens of five topics: Addressing Customer Needs, Client Protection, Credit Reporting & Data, Financial Capability, and Technology. The report provides a qualitative and interactive assessment of who is doing what, celebrating the most significant accomplishments, and highlighting the gaps that constitute the agenda for the coming years. We’ve started each topic of conversation with a scorecard between 0 and 10. We invite you to use the interactive feature on the website to cast your own vote and compare your scores to ours.

FI2020 E-Zine: Three Essential Debates

(August 2015) Will microfinance continue to be relevant in 2020 and beyond? Should regulators or the industry lead on client protection? Will data analytics replace traditional credit reporting systems? A new Financial inclusion 2020 e-magazine explores these three essential questions debate-style, tapping industry leaders from around the world to weigh in with their perspectives.

By the Numbers: Benchmarking Progress Toward Financial Inclusion 

(June 2015) CFI’s quantitative review of the current status of financial inclusion globally, which relies on the two Findex datasets supplemented by data from the EIU Global Microscope 2014, UN, World Development Indicators, IMF, Alliance for Financial Inclusion, and the GSMA State of the Industry.

Aging and Financial Inclusion: An Opportunity (PDF)

(January 2015) Written in partnership with HelpAge International, this report examines the unmet financial needs of the rapidly growing global aging population, particularly in the developing world. The purpose of this report is to highlight the barriers and opportunities related to financial services in older age and throughout the aging process, a relatively neglected area of study.

FI2020 Roundup 2014 E-Zine

(November 2014) One year since Financial Inclusion 2020 Global Forum, CFI is taking this moment to review how the drive for financial inclusion is faring. With this e-zine we bring you highlights of the past 12 months from around the financial inclusion world – new ventures, milestones, and ongoing debates. Inside, you’ll find a snapshot of progress in each of our five “Roadmap to Inclusion” areas, from technology-enabled business models to consumer protection.

 
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The Business of Financial Inclusion: Insights from Banks in Emerging Markets

This study – produced in partnership with the Institute of International Finance - examines the underreported role of banks in driving financial inclusion. Of the 3.2 billion people in the world with financial transaction accounts, 97 percent hold an account at a financial institution. According to the World Bank’s Global Findex database, over 90 percent of the 721 million new accounts opened between 2011 and 2014 were opened at financial institutions—the vast majority banks, but also including credit unions, cooperatives, microfinance institutions, and postal banks. Banks are playing a leading role in providing and extending financial services to underserved populations. Thanks to advances in technology, banks are also increasingly designing viable business models to serve unbanked and underbanked populations, which Accenture has estimated as a $380 billion market opportunity.

2 BanksLeadGlobalIncrease

To better understand the strategies enabling this growth, and to help banks, their partners, and the public sector work together to reach the next 2 billion, the Institute of International Finance (IIF) and the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) interviewed executives from 24 leading banks working in emerging markets to understand their business strategies, how technology and partnerships can enable inclusion, and where they see obstacles going forward.

Banks’ Top Opportunities in Financial Inclusion

1. Build on digital payments, including:
    a. G2P - procurement, payroll, social transfers, pensions, etc.
    b. Private sector - retailers, consumer goods companies, payroll, etc.
2. Start with the underbanked and use data to understand their needs.
3. Cross-sell the full range of products.
4. Address the usage gap by building financial capability.
5. Develop the ecosystem through bank-led partnerships, increasing customer convenience while sharing costs and risk.
6. Enable remote account opening using digital IDs, supported by proportional, tiered KYC requirements.
7. Align all systems to digital banking, benefiting banked, underbanked and unbanked customers.

Banks’ Top Barriers to Financial Inclusion

1. Lack of trust - in banks, in digital, in agents - leading to lack of uptake.
2. Lack of financial capability and digital literacy - leading to lack of usage.
3. Agent networks - building them, equipping them, ensuring their quality.
4. Data - privacy, security, cost, lack of capacity to analyze the data, lack of willingness for parties to share data, and regulations around these issues.
5. Regulatory issues, especially pricing, capacity, and KYC requirements.
6. Lack of coordination among government bodies.
7. Lack of connectivity/infrastructure.

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Download the Executive Summary here »

Download the Fact Sheet here »