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Payment Aspects of Financial Inclusion

Payment Aspects of Financial Inclusion

The  Payment Aspects of Financial Inclusion report examines demand- and supply-side factors affecting financial inclusion in the context of payment systems and services, and suggests measures to address these issues.

The report has been prepared for the Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures (CPMI) and the World Bank Group by a task force consisting of representatives from CPMI central banks, non-CPMI central banks active in the area of financial inclusion and international financial institutions.

Overview

In recent years, a number of reports have been prepared by organizations on financial inclusion.

However, few of these reports have addressed what may be called the “payment aspects” of financial inclusion. In cases where the topics of payment systems and payment services have been raised in the context of financial inclusion, discussion has focused only on specific aspects of payments, such as mobile payments, rather than on the payment system in its entirety. Understanding payments in a holistic sense, including how individual elements relate to one other, is crucial to an understanding of financial inclusion and to promoting broader access to and usage of financial services. Financial inclusion efforts – from a payments perspective – should aim at achieving a number of objectives.

Ideally, all individuals and businesses should have access to and be able to use at least one transaction account operated by a regulated payment service provider to:

  • perform most, if not all, of their payment needs
  • safely store some value
  • serve as a gateway to other financial services

This report provides an analysis of the payment aspects of financial inclusion, on the basis of which it sets out guiding principles designed to assist countries that seek to advance financial inclusion in their markets through payments.

The report outlines seven guiding principles designed to assist countries that want to advance financial inclusion in their markets through payments:

  • commitment from public and private sector organizations
  • a robust legal and regulatory framework underpinning financial inclusion
  • safe, efficient and widely reachable financial and ICT infrastructures;
  • transaction accounts and payment product offerings that effectively meet a broad range of transaction needs;
  • availability of a broad network of access points and interoperable access channels;
  • effective financial literacy efforts; and
  • the leveraging of large-volume and recurrent payment streams, including remittances, to advance financial inclusion objectives.

The report is being issued as a consultation document.

 

Related:
Press Release: New Report Examines Payment Aspects of Financial Inclusion

Final Report: Payment Aspects of Financial Inclusion