Trends of Financial Inclusion 2018 and New Survey for 2019

Sam Mendelson, Financial Inclusion Specialist at the European Microfinance Platform (e-MFP) presented to InFiNe.lu members the key findings of the Financial Inclusion Compass 2018 – e-MFP’s Survey of Financial Inclusion Trends.

The survey was conducted over Summer 2018 and distributed to e-MFP members and key financial inclusion stakeholders. It is intended to be an annual survey with compulsory quantitative and qualitative section, covering trends, new areas of focus, and sections on challenges, opportunities, financial service providers, forecasts and long-term hopes.

Most of the 77 respondents of the survey were based in Europe but the focus of their work was predominantly in Sub-Saharan Africa, South and East Asia, and globally. Their top five most important trends of financial inclusion were:

• Client protection
• Regulatory environment
• Governance
• Outreach to low-income segments
• Technology and new delivery channels

The compass underlines the correlations between these different trends.

According to the survey, the dominant area of focus is agri-finance, with 75 per cent of respondents choosing it. The other areas of focus are SME finance, climate change adaptation/mitigation, housing microfinance and energy.

The Compass identifies as well as the challenges and opportunities in inclusive finance. For instance, the FinTech revolution is perceived as a potential threat to end-clients and the sector overall but also as an opportunity (reduced operational cost, better communication, greater outreach). Client protection is also seen as very important.

The presentation was also the opportunity from e-MFP to take InFiNe.lu members feedbacks about the Survey.

The 2019 e-MFP Financial Inclusion Trends Survey has been launched. You can participante and complete it here