African payments provider iVeri, in conjunction with Calleo, a specialist business-to-business research and consultancy firm, has released a new whitepaper titled, “Accessing the Unbanked: Branchless Banking in Africa”
Currently, only around 23% of adults in Africa have a bank account. One of the main reasons for this large unbanked population in Africa is geographical inaccessibility and poor infrastructure, with many of the unbanked living in remote rural areas. This, combined with the high cost of banking services and a lack of financial education and understanding, creates very high barriers to banking for poor rural populations.
Many banks across Africa are however beginning to see the potential in banking the unbanked; this whitepaper looks at the best ways to deliver secure and cost-effective banking solutions in Africa.
Written as an educational tool for anyone interested in retail banking in Africa, the white paper discusses the needs of the unbanked, bank services vs. mobile money services, an overview of different banking channels, and some innovative solutions around how banks can drive growth.
The whitepaper is available in: English, Portuguese and French.
