MSC supported RBS-FI, Dia Vikas, and Rabobank Foundation to build robust and creditworthy MFIs in India. We conducted multiple technical assistance programs to provide handholding support to microfinance institutions (MFIs) to build capacity, map processes, and develop product. Our support also included market research, HR and risk management, documentation and dissemination, internal audit and control, strategic business planning, business and private financing, and pilot testing, among other areas.
We developed and successfully implemented various training programs and toolkits in partner MFIs. We supported more than 50 MFIs to scale up their operations and improve operational efficiency.
The MFIs became more comfortable accessing funds. We also supported the MFIs to develop a robust risk management system, and increase the number of loans to unbanked communities.
Dia Vikas, one of the program funders, described the program as “an extraordinary success that would have been impossible without MSC’s dedication, professionalism, and technical capacity.”
MSC supported Bangladesh Post Office and Bank Asia to ensure resilience and a sustainable livelihood for post banking agents. This project intended to use Bangladesh Post’s digital post e-centers’ initiative to improve the low-and-moderate-income segment’s (LMI) financial health.
MSC helped Bank Asia develop channels, build capacity, marketing and communications, and supervision and evaluation. The overarching goal was to solve two fundamental and interconnected problems:
- Post banking agents’ livelihood and income generation: 8,500 post e-center agents across Bangladesh earn less than USD 115 per month from the existing postal services. They need to be sustainable to serve thousands of rural LMI customers effectively.
- Financial services to build the LMI segment’s financial resilience and health: Millions of Bangladeshis live in rural areas and do not have access to the right financial solutions for their needs. Banks struggle to serve them due to high costs. They need access to appropriate financial services from a nationwide agent network, which is particularly convenient for female customers.
MSC conducted the post banking operations’ diagnostic and found infrastructural challenges and room for improvement in the post banking agents’ capabilities. MSC helped the bank agents develop the infrastructure and improve agent capacity through training and refreshers. MSC also supported Bank Asia to promote the channel through marketing communication and an agent comic book. Our current work also includes the revision of the incentive structure for the post banking agents’ channel development.
As a result of MSC’s interventions, Bank Asia onboarded 192,000 new customers, with 58% women. It also provided remittance for 1,750 agents and credit services beyond basic banking services. 22% of customers also received credit from these post e-center agents.
MetLife Foundation commissioned this project.
Smart Nkunganire System (SNS) is a public-private partnership (PPP) between BK TecHouse and the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB). The Rwandan government uses the system to distribute subsidized seed and fertilizer to more than 1,000 agri-dealers and serve more than 1.2 million smallholder farmers. The platform digitizes the agriculture input supply chain through the subsidy program stakeholders’ database. It monitors the agri input demand or supply at all levels, creates transparency and efficiency, and generates relevant analytics to ease decision-making processes. This promotes a green economy via cashless payments and unlocks access to agriculture insurance and financial services for smallholder farmers in Rwanda.
The platform had limited capabilities. It could not support its commercial viability. In this regard, BKTecHouse sought support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) to enhance the platform’s use cases and commercial viability. MSC helped BK TecHouse enhance SNS’s capabilities through a project that had two phases: i) Landscaping of Rwanda’s digital agriculture ecosystem and technical backstopping to facilitate the project design; ii) Grant proposal refinement to expand the SNS digital platform.
MSC helped assess Rwanda AgTech and FinTech players’ landscape in the engagement phase. We developed an investment roadmap for SNS to increase its reach and impact. Further, we designed a standard approach and tool to identify and qualify potential partners.
MSC also developed a partnership assessment framework and supported the first round of partner assessments with two target partners, which included the ISDA. Lastly, we facilitated workshops with about 30 critical stakeholder groups to identify partnerships and explore opportunities for engagement with the expanded SNS digital platform.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned the project.
MSC collaborated with NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) to enhance support for women entrepreneurs. MSC mapped more than 750 government programs at the central and state levels in India with a focus on six critical entrepreneurial needs.
MSC identified successful practices by state governments to improve program accessibility and utilization. Additionally, MSC produced a comprehensive report on mentorship and financial access for women entrepreneurs, which covered demand and supply aspects based on national-level research.
WEP used our findings to develop evidence-based policies and strategies to promote women’s entrepreneurship in India. As a knowledge partner, MSC provides technical support to WEP for its mentorship platform and care economy initiative. MSC plans to work closely with WEP to enhance its existing programs and create new sector-specific initiatives to improve women entrepreneurs’ access to credit, including collaboration with potential partners, such as SIDBI.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned this project.
The BMGF-FSP team intended to create reports that assessed the digital lending and recruitment landscape of mobile money and DFS agents in multiple countries across Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia. MSC was tasked with the following as part of this project:
- Describe the landscape of agent networks, FinTechs, banks, non-bank financial institutions, initiatives within mobile network operators, and other organizations that lend to agents.
- Describe the landscape of third-party service providers that support agents’ recruitment or management for mobile money providers and other financial service providers.
- Develop and publish market landscape and assessment reports on digital lending and mobile money and DFS agents’ recruitment in select markets from Sub-Saharan Africa, South Asia, and Southeast Asia.
The objective was to provide insights into the functionalities of DFS agent distribution networks. The project also intended to identify potential business models or innovations to address liquidity and credit constraints among agents. It also sought to enhance the understanding of the FinTech and digital finance community and contribute to financial inclusion. The project insights have contributed to further investments to help agents start and grow their current businesses and finance their adjacent businesses.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation commissioned the project.
MSC and IFC (International Finance Corporation) conducted a global landscape analysis of digital credit, which included Kenya. The analysis intended to help Kenyan financial institutions enhance digital credit’s use through alternative credit scoring and improved data collection, management, and analytics capabilities. We started with a desk and primary research to understand the global digital credit ecosystem, its policies, regulations, and users. We also analyzed supply- and demand-side interactions.
The report included an in-depth description of the digital credit ecosystem, trends in digital technologies, data-driven credit scoring methodologies, and the impact of digital credit on financial inclusion. The report also identified emerging best practices, gaps, and opportunities for the use of data-driven credit scoring methodologies. It also provided recommendations on ways to enhance the digital credit ecosystem.
The Central Bank of Kenya has since developed Digital Credit Providers’ (DCP) guidelines and licensing for non-bank financial institutions.
The World Bank Group – IFC commissioned the project.