CGAP

Local currency are sometimes described as part of the future of digital finance. But could they actually add value to existing solutions?

Read our latest blog to learn more: https://cgap.pub/4xgJlvA

Should financial integrity take precedence over data protection? The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) latest Travel Rule guidance suggests yes—but we make the case that there is a bigger picture worth considering.

More data crossing borders amplifies security risks, erodes trust in formal finance, and may fuel the very crimes AML/CFT aims to prevent.

But financial integrity and data protection objectives are aligned. Learn more in our latest blog: https://cgap.pub/4gbUB4X

Low- and middle-income countries are on the brink of becoming old before they become rich.

By 2050, one in five people worldwide will be 60 or older—with nearly four out of five living in LMICs. Yet only 5% of adults in low-income countries actively contribute to a pension scheme today. The challenge is especially acute for informal workers: those with stable enough incomes to save for old age but no access to suitable pension options—the "missing middle."

CGAP's research explores how countries are designing contributory pension schemes to reach this group. Discover the 4 key actions that governments can take to implement more effective pension schemes and make their traditional support systems more reliable 👇

📝 Learn more in our working paper: https://cgap.pub/3ZvJxYF

In Mexico, only 23% of adults have any insurance, and just 18% of women are insured. While access to accounts, payments, and credit has expanded, insurance still lags behind.

Reaching underserved populations will require a more inclusive approach.

A recent multi-stakeholder roundtable by Fundación MetLife México, MetLife Foundation, and CGAP identified four interconnected opportunities to advance inclusive insurance and improve financial resilience and wellbeing in Mexico:

✅ Modernize regulation for a broader inclusive insurance approach.
✅ Center customers in product design, delivery, and supervision.
✅ Strengthen collaboration across public, private, and nonprofit actors.
✅ Embed insurance in national financial inclusion and wellbeing strategies.

The key takeaway for all jurisdictions: scaling inclusive insurance will require policymakers, regulators, insurers, and civil society to work together — using evidence, learning from experience, and committing to sustained action.

Learn more in our latest blog: https://cgap.pub/4zfs0o0

From the dusty roadside kiosks of Senegal to the fresh produce markets of Kenya, a slow revolution is underway. 📈

Across Sub-Saharan Africa, code is quietly emerging across the financial landscape – but the latest Global Findex 2025 data reveals that it may not yet be strong enough to loosen the unshakable grip of cash..

A comparison of two types of digital payments—Person to Person (P2P) vs. Person to Business (P2B) —across eight digitally mature, low- to lower-middle-income Sub-Saharan African countries reveals a consistent trend: person-to-business (P2B) payments lag significantly behind person-to-person (P2P) payments.

🔍 Examine our poster below to find out more, and read the full blog here: https://cgap.pub/4lWbimI

For too long, disaster risk reduction, humanitarian anticipatory action, and climate insurance have shared the vocabulary of resilience but rarely spoken the same language.

Evidence from the Pacific Islands to Cuba suggests that change is possible.

🔹 Risk reduction drives insurability: In Cuba, agricultural cooperatives using DRR measures lowered their vulnerability scores and crop losses (from 15% to 7%), earning reduced insurance premiums.

🔹 Anticipatory action redefines insurance: In Fiji, forecast index insurance releases up to 20% of payouts 48–72 hours before a cyclone hits, giving communities resources to prepare rather than just repair.

🔹 Community is the first mile: Embedding local agents and design partners ensures financial protection is accessible, affordable, and built on trusted social structures.

The insurance industry cannot remain viable through post-disaster payouts alone. To close the protection gap, financial models must actively incentivize resilience and turn high-risk communities into insurable ones.

Read the full blog: https://cgap.pub/4xocSD7

How can authorities advance competition for financial inclusion?

While digital innovation has intensified competition concerns in financial markets, many financial sector authorities remain unsure about how to act—either because they lack a formal competition mandate or because competition issues slip through institutional gaps.

CGAP argues that financial sector authorities can act on competition concerns using their existing mandates and regulatory toolkit. By applying a competition lens, authorities can promote competition in ways that advance financial inclusion while safeguarding stability, integrity, and consumer protection.

Drawing on country experiences from Brazil, Cambodia, India, Kenya, Mexico, Pakistan, South Africa, and the United Kingdom, we identified six practical policy considerations for authorities.

Read the full paper here: https://cgap.pub/49bzcpX