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Providing cutting edge organizations with customized advisory services to help break down barriers and expand the frontiers of banking

Consumption, new livelihoods, and scalability are the elements that lead to democratizing commerce, making the benefits of a global economy accessible to all

~ C.K. Prahalad,
Forward to Business Solutions for the Global Poor

Poor people can save and want to save, and when they do not save it is because of lack of opportunity, rather than a lack of capacity.

~ Stuart Rutherford,
The Poor and their Money

Today, the farmer with access to a cell phone can comparison shop and check fluctuating prices with a few quick calls, putting himself in a far better position to demand a fair deal from the local merchant or middleman. Information is power, and the cell phone revolution is putting a little of that power in the hands of the rural poor.

~ Muhammad Yunus, 
Creating a World Without Poverty

Although innovation is unpredictable, there is a lot that governments, private companies, and foundations can do to accelerate it.

~Bill Gates,
Co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation,
2010 Annual Letter from Bill Gates

 

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We support key players in their efforts to extend a diverse array of financial services in markets across the globe. Our collective years of experience, combined with creativity and thought leadership enables us to apply unique perspectives towards overcoming the toughest barriers to financial inclusion. 

Featured BFA Project:

GFIS
Gateway Financial Innovations for Savings (GAFIS)

Description:

BFA has been retained by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors (RPA) to manage RPA’s special project called the “Gateway Financial Innovations for Savings”(GAFIS), which is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.  GAFIS will seek to promote useful savings behavior among poor households by leveraging certain “gateway-type” products or cash flows which may support the development of small savings by regulated deposit-taking institutions.  The study will take place over multiple countries and will focus on five commercial institutions with an existing financial service or product specifically targeted at the poor which may or may not be being leveraged to its full potential  - in other words, the accounts were opened, but saw limited to no usage thereafter.  

The intentions of GAFIS are therefore to support these five institutions to develop a new savings product that is linked to the existing gateway flow or product.  GAFIS will provide a tailored combination of market research support throughout the product cycle, technical assistance for demand and supply-side support to each, peer-support among partners, and grant assistance.

For a brief program overview please see: GAFIS program overview November 09 New Window

For more information, please visit: www.gatewaytosavings.org New Window

New BFA Publications:

How enabling is the Latin American environment for mobile money?

Description:
This Briefing Note includes new ratings of the enabling environment for mobile financial services in five Latin American countries - Brazil, Mexico, Ecuador, Bolivia, and Peru - drawing on information from a 2008 report by Afi. This Note is therefore another step in the process of broadening the country coverage and enhancing the rating methodology for tracking changes in the environment across a wider group of countries.

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Hot Off The Press:
(Intriguing literature from the market place)

Portfolios of the Poor

Portfolios of the PoorThe book tackles the fundamental question of how the poor make ends meet.

Over 250 families in Bangladesh, India, and South Africa participated in this study of financial practices of the world's poor.

 

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Upcoming Events:

Mobile Money Summit
 Rio
24-27 May 2010 
www.gsmworld.com

Global Housing Finance after the crisis
Washington DC
26-27 May 2010
web.worldbank.org