Co-opBank of Vietnam is an apex lender to 1,100+ public credit funds (PCFs). It sought to modernize operations and extend digital services to millions of rural clients. MSC partnered with the bank to reimagine its business model for a cash-lite future.

We mapped end-to-end lending workflows, introduced streamlined digital credit-origination tools, and embedded data-driven risk-scoring to cut turnaround times and boost portfolio quality. MSC built on this foundation and brokered a third-party partnership that enables PCFs to offer mobile-enabled savings, payments, and microinsurance products under a shared agent network. Change-management and skills-building programs ensured staff and PCF leaders could adopt new technologies confidently.

The transformation has enabled Co-opBank and its PCF network to deliver faster, safer, and more diversified services. This strengthens rural financial inclusion and promotes Vietnam’s cash-lite agenda.

The MetLife Foundation commissioned this project.

With more than seven million clients, the Vietnam Bank for Social Policies (VBSP) saw mobile channels as a game-changer for outreach and efficiency. The VBSP engaged MSC to assess the viability of launching mobile money, SMS banking, and related digital services.

MSC blended demand-side research with operational diagnostics. We segmented customer needs, modelled potential uptake, and quantified efficiency gains from digital channels. A rigorous review of the VBSP’s technology stack, agent network, and regulatory context identified enablers and gaps. Scenario modelling compared wallet partnerships, bank-led mobile money, and hybrid approaches, which highlighted risk, cost, and scalability trade-offs.

Our final roadmap charts a phased rollout, from limited-function SMS pilots to a full mobile-money ecosystem integrated with national payment rails. The roadmap equipped VBSP with a clear business case, technology blueprint, and compliance checklist. It is now poised to deliver convenient, secure, and affordable digital financial services to Vietnam’s most vulnerable households.

The Vietnam Bank for Social Policies commissioned this project.

Bangladesh’s vibrant microfinance industry has long powered grassroots entrepreneurship. However, the industry needed to shift to a stronger, prudential oversight and diversified funding for its continued expansion. Business Finance for the Poor in Bangladesh (BFP-B) engaged MSC to assess the feasibility of converting leading NGO-MFIs into regulated microfinance banks or finance companies. This would transform financial inclusion with far-reaching implications.

MSC adopted a 360-degree diagnostic approach. We consulted the central bank, microfinance regulators, commercial banks, investors, and industry associations to gauge regulatory readiness and market appetite. We also conducted in-depth institutional assessments across representative MFIs to analyze product portfolios, capital structures, governance, and digital capabilities. Market-sizing and scenario modelling quantified current balance-sheet strength, projected growth, and the potential influx of commercial funding post-transformation.

Our analysis surfaced four critical success factors. These include balanced ownership structures that safeguard social missions, expanded access to wholesale and retail deposits, diversified products tailored to evolving client needs, and robust risk-management systems. MSC crafted a pragmatic transformation roadmap that outlined licensing pathways, phased capitalization plans, regulatory amendments, and capacity-building priorities based on these insights.

The study equips BFP-B, policymakers, and sector leaders with actionable guidance to modernize Bangladesh’s microfinance landscape. This will unlock larger, more sustainable sources of capital and deepen outreach to underserved communities.

Business Finance for the Poor in Bangladesh (BFP-B) commissioned this project. BFP-B project was commissioned to help the central bank frame a conducive policy and regulatory environment supportive to MSME development and to introduce credit guarantee scheme for micro and small enterprises.

The ‘Decoding the Financial Health of women-owned microbusinesses in India’ initiative was launched to address the unique vulnerabilities of women-led microenterprises, especially in the aftermath of economic shocks such as the pandemic. MSC, in collaboration with Sa-Dhan, conducted a pioneering study on the financial health of women-owned microbusinesses (wMBs) in India.

The project involved extensive research, including secondary analysis, expert consultations, and primary data collection, to develop a comprehensive financial health framework for wMBs. The framework defines key dimensions, parameters, and indicators that assess and improve financial health outcomes for women entrepreneurs.

MSC led the study’s design and execution to ensure a robust and evidence-based approach to financial health assessment for wMBs. The team conducted Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) with supply-side stakeholders, held brainstorming workshops with industry experts, and engaged Enterprise Support Organizations (ESOs) and government bodies to refine the framework. The study resulted in a structured methodology for measuring financial health, providing actionable insights for key ecosystem players.

The study delivered a first-of-its-kind financial health framework and checklist, offering practical financial and non-financial tools for stakeholders—including funders, financial institutions, ESOs, and policymakers—to assess and enhance the financial well-being of women-owned micro businesses. It also contributed to the broader financial health discourse in India by bridging research gaps and strengthening the understanding of how ecosystem actors perceive and influence wMB financial health.

 J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.  commissioned this project.

MSC partnered with SEWA Bharat to research women entrepreneurs’ credit journey and experiences. The report ‘Women and Credit: Access to Credit for Micro and Small Female Entrepreneurs in India’ follows the micro and small women entrepreneurs’ credit journey and explores demand and supply-side factors. It shares insights on credit requirements, experiences, challenges, and key credit success determinants for individual and collective women-led enterprises. It also shares the supply-side experiences of bankers and other organizations and some good practices that supply-side stakeholders implement to mitigate and distribute credit risk.

Drawing on global evidence, expert interviews, and practitioner insights, the study provided a nuanced understanding of the structural, institutional, and social barriers that limit women’s access to formal finance. It shed light on the design and delivery gaps in existing credit products, the underutilization of gender-disaggregated data, and the potential for inclusive innovation in lending. The findings have informed product and policy recommendations to help financial service providers, regulators, and support organizations better serve women borrowers. The study has contributed to the sector by framing access to credit as not just a financial issue, but a matter of equity and economic empowerment.

Ultimately, it provides key recommendations to enhance access to credit for women entrepreneurs.

CICO agents are vital to the growth of digital financial services in India. Yet, they continue to face significant challenges, which include unreliable operations, limited product diversity, weak grievance redress mechanisms, and low representation of women. These issues limit customer satisfaction, reduce agent viability, and constrain financial inclusion at scale.

MSC collaborated with Airtel Payments Bank, FINO Payments Bank, Indian Bank, Bank of India, and Pay1 to design and scale solutions across three strategic pillars. The first focused on expanding the range of products and services, both existing and new, that agents could offer, with a special emphasis on reaching women and rural low-income households. The second improved liquidity management for agents, while the third enhanced grievance resolution practices to strengthen customer experience at service points.

The project applied in-depth behavioral research to develop non-CICO use cases tailored to different customer segments, such as women, gig workers, and contractual factory workers. MSC facilitated workshops to prioritize solutions, support prototype development, pilot test innovations, and develop go-to-market strategies. In parallel, frameworks were deployed to strengthen agent liquidity, streamline grievance handling, and institutionalize service quality improvements.

The engagement has enabled over 100,000 agents, 20% of them women, to offer non-CICO services, and connected more than 2 million new low- and middle-income customers. At least three new non-CICO use cases have been integrated into CICO operations, a credit screening tool has been developed to help lending partners meet the working capital needs of over 100,000 agents, and an efficient grievance resolution mechanism now serves 15,000 BC agents nationwide.

The Gates Foundation commissioned this project.