Here is a recap of our 12th June 2024 Interledger Community Call with Meeting Notes.

Complete meeting minutes and project updates are here on the ILF Community Call Public Notes Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T_Q_eRZtL8GluJR9rVADd7fvkB8mPluMk-d96LM4vlg/edit#heading=h.i483w26q1r6j

ILF Community Call - 12 June 2024

Here is a podcast of our 10th July 2024 Interledger Community Call.

Complete meeting minutes and project updates are here on the ILF Community Call Public Notes Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T_Q_eRZtL8GluJR9rVADd7fvkB8mPluMk-d96LM4vlg/edit#heading=h.i483w26q1r6j

ILF Community Call - 10 July 2024

Here is a podcast of our 14th August 2024 Interledger Community Call.

Complete meeting minutes and project updates are here on the ILF Community Call Public Notes Document: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T_Q_eRZtL8GluJR9rVADd7fvkB8mPluMk-d96LM4vlg/edit#heading=h.i483w26q1r6j

ILF Community Call - 14 August 2024

QIKQIK is a song promoting QIKQIK, A Next-Generation Borderless Embedded Payment Rails for Africa and Diaspora. Visit https://qikqik.plus to register!

LYRICS

[Verse]
Tap on my phone now
Life is digital wow
No need for cash flow
Everything QIKQIK go

[Verse 2]
Standing in the line no
Payments instant shine glow
Scan the code let's ride
To the future full of pride

[Chorus]
QIKQIK swipe that card
Send the money near or far
QIKQIK
There's no delay
Digital's the way we pay

[Bridge]
Move to the beat we dance
Every transaction's a chance
No more pockets full of change
World is changing quick and strange

[Verse 3]
Shopping online today
Products just a click away
No more waiting time
Life is easy feels so fine

[Chorus]
QIKQIK swipe that card
Send the money near or far
QIKQIK
There's no delay
Digital's the way we pay

[Verse]
Tap on my phone now
Life is digital wow
No need for cash flow
Everything QIKQIK go

[Verse 2]
Standing in the line no
Payments instant shine glow
Scan the code let's ride
To the future full of pride

[Chorus]
QIKQIK swipe that card
Send the money near or far
QIKQIK
There's no delay
Digital's the way we pay

[Bridge]
Move to the beat we dance
Every transaction's a chance
No more pockets full of change
World is changing quick and strange

[Verse 3]
Shopping online today
Products just a click away
No more waiting time
Life is easy feels so fine

[Chorus]
QIKQIK swipe that card
Send the money near or far
QIKQIK
There's no delay
Digital's the way we pay

QIKQIK

Here is a recap of our 9th October 2024 Interledger Community Call with Meeting Notes: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1T_Q_eRZtL8GluJR9rVADd7fvkB8mPluMk-d96LM4vlg/edit?tab=t.0#heading=h.xsstyqrsbjsx

ILF Community Call - November 2024

In Brazil, the banking world is changing fast. Open Finance allows people in Brazil to securely share their financial data across financial service providers, sparking competition and innovation among providers. This empowers customers to compare and choose services that best meet their needs. But how does open finance work in practice and what does it mean for the millions of people still excluded or underserved by formal finance? 

In this episode, we talk to experts at the Central Bank of Brazil, Nubank, and CGAP about Brazil’s experience in rolling out open finance and how data can help unlock credit for informal workers, improve product offerings, and reach wider segments of society. Along the way, we tackle critical questions: Can open finance help reduce inequality? And what lessons can other countries learn from Brazil’s rapid adoption? 

 Featured Voices: 

Matheus Rauber, Senior Advisor, Financial System Regulation Department, Central Bank of Brazil 

Rafael Wowk, Head of Regulatory Affairs, NuBank 

Maria Fernandez Vidal, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, CGAP 

Listen and subscribe for free on your favorite platform. To learn more, visit www.cgap.org. To share feedback, connect with us at podcast@cgap.org.   

Banking on Open Finance to Advance Financial Inclusion: Lessons from Brazil

Artificial intelligence (AI) is already transforming almost every aspect of the financial services industry. It is driving efficiencies and sparking innovation by reshaping the way financial authorities protect consumers—not just how financial service providers operate. But financial authorities need to walk a tightrope. While they need to harness the power of AI to improve consumer protection, they must also address the novel risks and challenges that AI brings, such as new forms of financial fraud, cyber threats, and data privacy concerns. 

This episode explores how the Central Bank of the Philippines is embracing AI-powered "SupTech” (supervisory technology) for its chatbot named BOB to enhance financial consumer protection. We'll hear from experts at the Central Bank of the Philippines, the Cambridge SupTech Lab, and CGAP about the potential benefits and risks of this revolutionary technology. 

Featured Voices: 

Charina B. De Vera-Yap, Director of the Consumer Protection and Market Conduct Office (CPMCO), Regional Operations and Advocacy Sector, Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP)   

Matt Grasser, Co-Head and Tech Lead, Cambridge SupTech Lab and Principal Technologist at Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) 

Juan Carlos Izaguirre, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, CGAP 

Eric Duflos, Senior Financial Sector Specialist and Consumer Protection Lead, CGAP   


Listen and subscribe for free on your favorite platform. To learn more, visit www.cgap.org. To share feedback, connect with us at podcast@cgap.org. 

Can AI Revolutionize Financial Consumer Protection?

Interledger Community call - 8 January 2025

Interledger Community Call - 8 January 2025

The climate crisis demands urgent global action. Green technologies—like solar panels and clean cookstoves—have the potential to transform lives and protect the planet but remain out of reach for many in developing economies. Can carbon markets make them more accessible? 

Voluntary carbon markets (VCMs), where companies purchase carbon credits to offset greenhouse gas emissions, are rapidly gaining traction. These markets hold immense potential to enable the adoption of green technologies among low-income households on the frontlines of climate change and improve their lives.  

In this episode, we take a deep dive into VCMs to hear from ATEC about their pay-as-you-go electric cookstoves, which aim to decarbonize cooking through verifiable tech, how Gold Standard issues carbon certifications, and why CGAP sees a promising role for financial services in supporting more inclusive carbon markets.   

Featured Voices: 

Ben Jeffreys, CEO, ATEC 

Vikash Talyan, Senior Director of Standard Development and Innovation, Gold Standard 

Max Mattern, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, CGAP 


Listen and subscribe for free on your favorite platform. To learn more, visit www.cgap.org. To share feedback, connect with us at podcast@cgap.org.   

Can Inclusive Carbon Markets Pave the Way for a Just Transition?

In 2019, Lebanon witnessed the start of one of the most severe socio-economic crises globally since the mid-nineteenth century, plunging many Lebanese into poverty.  

Amid the hardships, a new hope emerged in 2021. The World Bank set up a $246 million social safety net project and the Government of Lebanon (GoL) designed a registration platform for this program, with the help of Siren Associates, called DAEM (Arabic for "support"). Built in record time, DAEM is more than just a registry; it’s a fully localized social protection system that provides a lifeline to Lebanese families hit by crisis.

In this episode, we hear from the GoL, CGAP, the World Bank, and Siren Associates about how collaboration was key to DAEM’s success and how, even in the most challenging conditions, it’s possible to design solutions that go beyond emergency relief and sow the seeds for a more inclusive financial system.  

This is Season 2, Episode 6 of CGAP's podcast, Inclusive Finance Frontiers. 

Featured Voices
Ahmed Fatih Ortakaya, Senior Social Protection Specialist, World Bank
Carole Alsharabati, Research Director, SIREN Associates
Marie Louise Abou Jaoudeh, Presidency of the Council of Ministers (PCM) of the Government of Lebanon
Nadine Chehade, Senior Financial Sector Specialist, World Bank 
Souraya Sbeih, Consultant, CGAP 
Listen and subscribe for free on your favorite platform. To learn more, visit www.cgap.org. To share feedback, connect with us at podcast@cgap.org. 

 

This episode incorporates a news report from PBS NewsHour, Financial crisis leads some in Lebanon to rob banks to access their money.

Coding Through Crisis: Building a Digital Social Protection System in Lebanon

In a world where financial inclusion remains one of our generation's greatest challenges, emerging markets are becoming the true laboratories of fintech innovation. While developed economies iterate on convenience, companies operating in regions with limited banking infrastructure are fundamentally reimagining what financial services can look like from the ground up.

Today, we're diving into this fascinating intersection of opportunity and impact with David Lask from Tala. Tala has built a reputation as a pioneer in financial inclusion, providing access to credit and financial services to underbanked populations across multiple continents.

David joins us fresh from the Fintech Americas Miami conference to share his insights on the rapidly evolving Latin American fintech landscape. We'll explore how the unique challenges and opportunities in this region are fostering innovative approaches to financial services, with a special focus on Mexico as a compelling case study of fintech evolution.

Serving the global majority: How Tala is reshaping financial inclusion in Latin America and beyond

Interledger Community Call - June 2025

When compliance crosses the line into political suppression. This episode dives into the story of Azruddin Mohamed’s sanctions, the sweeping de-risking of his political party’s candidates, and the chilling effect on Guyana’s democracy.
We explore:
* How U.S. sanctions ripple through Guyana’s financial system
* Why banks close accounts of people with no direct ties to alleged wrongdoing
* The human cost, from frozen accounts to lost jobs
* The tension between global compliance and political freedom
From boardrooms to ballot boxes, this is the inside look at how overcompliance can reshape a nation’s politics and economy.


Banking on Fear How Overcompliance Is Freezing Guyanas Democracy

The 28th Universal Postal Congress will bring together 192 member countries to decide the future direction of the global postal sector. In this episode of Voice Mail, Siva Somasundram, Director of Policy, Regulation and Markets at the UPU, offers a clear look at how the highest decision-making body of the UPU is being prepared, from shaping the agenda and proposals to supporting member states in the lead-up to key decisions.

As a plenipotentiary meeting, Congress plays a vital role in defining the UPU’s strategic direction, regulatory framework, and development priorities for the next four years. Somasundram explains what it takes to coordinate this process, from managing the flow of proposals submitted by member countries to organizing outreach that ensures informed and active participation.

This is an inside view of how global postal policy is negotiated, decided, and translated into action for the years ahead.

Building the future of the postal sector one Congress at a time

In the latest episode of the What the FinTech? podcast, we’re joined by Joanne Dewar, Project Lead at Project Nemo, to discuss how to make financial services more accessible for people with disabilities.

Joanne and FinTech Futures reporter Cameron Emanuel-Burns explore Project Nemo's origins and development, examining findings from the organisation's recent report on challenges adults with disabilities face when engaging financial services, with Dewar offering recommendations for financial institutions seeking to remove these barriers.

The conversation also addresses how emerging technologies, particularly artificial intelligence, are reshaping disability inclusion in financial services, while tackling common misconceptions about accessibility in the industry.

And finally, we discover which fintech buzzword Joanne wants to throw into or rescue from our Fintech Jail!

What the FinTech? | S.6 Episode 17 | Enhancing disability inclusion in financial services

In this episode, Uzair talks to Zeeshan Khattak, Commissioner at the Securities & Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) about the deepening of financial markets in Pakistan and the ways in which the SECP is trying to expand access to finance at the individual and corporate level.

Mr. Zeeshan Rehman Khattak joined the SECP as Commissioner in November 2024. He has over two decades of local and international experience in Real Estate Investment & Management, Regulatory Affairs, Wealth Management, and Development of Export-led Technology Infrastructure.  

Mr. Khattak brings rich experience in capital markets, regulatory oversight and assets’ management. Mr. Khattak’s most recent association was with Pakistan Software Export Board (PSEB) as Chief Commercial Officer and additionally as Chief Executive Officer designate.

Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
2:20 SECP’s priorities
11:25 Savings via digital gold
14:20 Regulatory sandboxes
25:05 Focus on startups
27:30 Climate finance

Ep 253 - SECP's Role in Deepening Capital Markets

Episode overview:
Prince Nwadeyi spent years providing market research that unlocked South Africa's R600 billion (~USD 34.4 billion) informal economy for blue-chip clients. The likes of Swiss Re, Liberty, NASPERS all wanted the insights. Few wanted the execution risk.

In conversation with Andile Masuku, Nwadeyi explains why his holding company SAG Ventures stopped selling insights and started building businesses. From Mustard Finance Group (formerly Setana Capital) providing working capital to township spaza shops (micro convenience stores), to Purchase Pal embedding funeral cover into everyday groceries, Nwadeyi's ventures share a common thread: aligning incentives across entire value chains whilst playing a longer game than quarterly-focused corporates can stomach.

His journey from UCT postgrad researcher to operator deploying millions in credit with a claimed 99.9% repayment rate offers a masterclass in strategic patience and the power of granular consumer understanding.

Key insights:
- On why insights alone don't create impact: "We realised that some of the executives were not willing to take the risk, not for any risk of their own, but really just how the incentive structure set up within corporate." Nwadeyi discovered that knowing differently doesn't translate to acting differently when bonuses hang in the balance. The solution? Stop asking permission and build the innovation yourself.

- On aligning incentives to unlock impossible markets: Working capital finance to informal retailers seemed impossible until Nwadeyi mapped the ecosystem. Wholesalers wanted more sales but couldn't offer credit. They did have transaction data. "Can we build a technology solution that interprets that data at scale to enable unique insight that traditional finance institutions don't have access to?" The result: finance the stock purchase to the wholesaler, the SME repays over 14 days, everyone wins. One of their spaza shop clients recently scaled from one store to three and bought her first house for R1 million (~USD 57,400) cash.

- On thinking in decades whilst executing in months: "You don't have to think in days. You have to think in decades." Purchase Pal (what Nwadeyi claims to be "the world's first FMCG-embedded funeral insurance") represents one piece of a five-year strategy spanning multiple financial services verticals. The long game enables patient execution whilst maintaining corporate relevance. "What's my exit point? What's my entry point? Am I wanting to build this alongside?"

- On why research beats assumptions every time: A tearful interview during his MPhil research - a woman describing the humiliation of borrowing money to bury her mother whilst neighbours gossiped about her poverty - sparked the Purchase Pal concept. "What if we could unlock quote unquote, what I call, no cost insurance?" Years of ethnographic research revealed the margin structure in FMCG goods, the cost burden of traditional insurance intermediation, and the customer stickiness problem facing consumer goods manufacturers. Research made the impossible obvious.

Notable moment:
The pivot from consultant to operator: Walking through a Cape Flats township, Nwadeyi's co-founder encountered a spaza shop owner struggling for financing. "All I ever wanted to do is to feed myself, feed my family or feed my business." That human story, repeated across thousands of township retailers, shifted SAG from insight provider to solution builder. Traditional finance wouldn't touch these operators. Nwadeyi's team reportedly deployed over R100 million (~USD 5.7 million) and achieved 99.9% repayment rates.

Image credit: SAG Ventures

Prince Nwadeyi of SAG Ventures: Building solutions corporates need but won't execute themselves

Africa-focused technology, digital and innovation ecosystem insight and commentary.

A seasoned former securities regulator and expert in Broker-Dealer Regulation, specializing in transforming risk and compliance programs for financial institutions. Experienced in leading multi-disciplinary teams in FinTech and RegTech advisory, focusing on payment fraud prevention using advanced technology and intelligence. Actively involved in pro-bono compliance services for nonprofits and mentorship programs for young professionals globally.

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Candid conversations with senior executives, fintech entrepreneurs, investors, industry experts -- all weigh in on the trends impacting the industry and the disruptive impact technology is having on the business.

Where social media, technology and finance intersect.

Pakistan's first podcast focused on the country's economy, simplifying the complex relationships between paisa, politics and the public.

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FinTech Futures was founded as Banking Technology Magazine in the 1980s.

Today you can find worldwide fintech news, intelligence & analysis at https://fintechfutures.com.

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UPU is the UN specialized agency for postal services working with 192 member countries to create the postal network of the future.

New tracks tagged #Financial Inclusion