a woman in Indian dress on the phone in a field of yellow and orange flowers Photo by Alok Avinash/2015 CGAP Photo Contest

Digital Innovation

Digital innovation has transformed the way we live, work, and interact with each other. By leveraging digital technology such as mobile banking, digital payments, and access to credit and insurance services have made financial services accessible to individuals and businesses that were previously excluded.  

The digital economy generates new business models annually, attracting a broader range of players to the financial services industry, including fintechs and social networks. This diversity of providers and business models has enormous potential to advance financial inclusion and contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Business models build proper connectivity through strategic partnerships, making it easier for innovators to offer valuable, affordable financial solutions. 

CGAP's research showcases various business models that effectively use digital technologies to create and provide financial solutions to people with low income. We demonstrate how increased connectivity can make it simpler for innovators to offer financial solutions that are both valuable and affordable. Our work focus ranges from the digitization of Microfinance, Open Finance, financial services for gig workers, data-driven financial Services, and more.  

As digital innovation continues to evolve, we will see even more creative solutions that will further promote financial inclusion and enhance the lives of individuals and communities worldwide. 

Featured Collections

farmer selling produce at a street market

Cash-In / Cash-Out for Rural Agent Networks

Cash-in/cash-out agent networks are key to extending digital financial services and ultimately financial inclusion. Providers have struggled to extend these agent networks in rural areas, where sparse populations lead to lower transaction volumes and weaker financial incentives for businesses to serve as agents.
a pedestrian viewing street art depicting a desk worker

Fintech and the Future of Banking

While many fintechs claim to advance financial inclusion, the link between specific innovations and financial inclusion is often assumed rather than proven. The reality is that it is hard for funders, investors and social entrepreneurs know which innovations matter for low-income, underserved customers.
women stand outside their rickshaws Photo by Nikhil Kapur

Gig Platforms and Financial Inclusion

Across emerging markets, millions of informal workers are joining gig platforms in sectors like ride-hailing and deliveries. CGAP’s engagement with platforms, fintechs and gig workers offers a glimpse into what the future could look like.  
A view of two smartphones at the cattle and livestock market in the Lafiabougou district of Bamako, Mali. CGAP Photo (Nicolas Réméné via Communication for Development Ltd.)

OPEN APIs FOR DIGITAL FINANCE

Digital financial services providers will find here information to help them decide whether open APIs make sense for their business and, if so, how to implement an open API strategy.
Photo by Wen Jye Chan, 2016 CGAP Photo Contest

Digitizing Merchant Payments

With vast amounts of revenue and data at stake, merchant payments are widely seen as one of the key battlegrounds in the struggle over the future of digital financial services (DFS).
Bangladeshi worker coloring and drying cloth material, Bangladesh. Photo by Sohel Parvez Haque, 2017 CGAP Photo Contest

Beyond Switches, What Makes Interoperability Work?

CGAP's interoperability work seeks to help low-income users transact more easily across digital financial services networks. Exchanging payments is about much more than simply building the technical connections. Interoperability also requires effective governance, clear operating rules, and business agreements on how to support safe and reliable connections.
woman holding a cell phone in her hand Photo courtesy of IDEO.org

Data-driven Financial Services

Emerging evidence shows that data trails generated by poor people can be harnessed for developing inclusive financial services. Learn what CGAP is doing to unlock how data can be leveraged to catalyze financial services that reach poor and underserved people at scale and in a responsible manner. 

Latest Research

Publication

The Building Blocks Supporting Open Finance

This working paper introduces the concept of an inclusive data ecosystem as one where low-income people’s data trails are used to improve their financial inclusion. The paper highlights open finance as a catalyst for inclusive data ecosystems and identifies key enabling layers that drive the success of open finance and, by extension, an inclusive data ecosystem.
Publication

Open Finance Self-Assessment Tool and Development Roadmap

This technical guide introduces the open finance self-assessment tool and development roadmap. It provides practical tools for policymakers to use to decide whether to implement an open finance regime to advance financial inclusion and outline a development roadmap to guide the implementation process.
Publication

Gender-Intentional Credit Scoring

Evidence shows women often demonstrate higher loan repayment rates than men, suggesting they are lower-risk borrowers yet face higher barriers to loan approval. This guide introduces a gender-lens analytical framework for lenders to determine whether lending decisions and outcomes in their portfolios differ by gender and, if so, how.
View More Research

Latest Blogs

Blog

Open Finance Can Reduce Financial Inclusion Gaps: Here’s How

Open finance can be a transformational enabler to unleash the power of data to increase financial inclusion. Data-driven strategies and open finance ecosystems can revolutionize access to financial services, especially for underserved communities.
Blog

Cash vs. Digital? Unleashing the Power of DFS through Agent Networks

The rise of DFS has sparked debate on cash's future in developing economies. But, despite increasing adoption of DFS, cash prevails in most global economies, emphasizing agent networks' crucial role as enablers rather than disruptors.
Blog

Regular Savings from Irregular Income: How Platforms Can Help

CGAP partnered with fintechs and platforms across Sub-Saharan Africa to understand how they are using digital rails to offer savings products to low-income gig workers. Here, we share what we found.
View More Blogs