Finance to the People

Over eighty policymakers and experts attended the workshop on Promoting Financial Inclusion through Innovative Policies on 31 March–3 April in Tokyo. The event was organized by ADBI, Advisory Group on APEC Financial System Capacity-Building, APEC Business Advisory Council, and Alliance for Financial Inclusion.

Participants discussed approaches and exchanged country experiences in six key areas: (i) agent banking, where innovative policies and regulations can facilitate partnerships with non-bank agents like post offices so financial services can reach unbanked customers at lower costs; (ii) mobile banking, where financial transactions, such as deposit-taking, withdrawal, and payment, can be offered through mobile technologies and services; (iii) diversification of providers, where regulatory reform can lower barriers for start-up institutions developing financial products for low-income clients; (iv) reform of public banks, with case studies on Union Bank of India and Khan Bank of Mongolia; (v) financial identification, where the lack of financial identity constraints to the poor’s access to formal financial services; and (vi) consumer protection, focusing on areas such as education, transparency, disclosure, and fair recovery practices.

See more details about the workshop.

More than 80 policymakers and experts gathered to discuss issues on microfinance, including the fact that 60% of households in Asia lack access to formal financial services..