How Mobile Banking Improves Financial Access

In 2021, I became the first woman to head a unicorn in Israel, AKA Startup Nation. In many parts of the world, women are excluded from even the most basic financial services, so leading a fintech company is far from their reality. United Nations data estimates that 3.8 billion women live in the world, 50% of which are adults. According to the World Bank’s Global Findex Database, 1.4 billion of those 1.9 billion adult women, are unbanked. That’s 73.65%. Visit that statistic again. It represents a disturbing gender gap in financial access, with women being far less likely than men to have bank accounts or access formal financial services. This financial exclusion has personal impact. It diminishes women’s economic empowerment by restricting access to education and limiting their potential for personal growth and independence. It makes women more financially dependent, and therefore, more vulnerable. There's economic impact, too. Research by McKinsey highlights the economic loss due to financial exclusion of women, noting that closing the gender gap in labor force participation could add trillions to global GDP. Financial inclusion isn’t just a matter of equality – ensuring the same opportunities for all. It’s a matter of equity - ensuring women have the tools and access they need to fully participate in the global economy. That’s where technology enters the picture to level the field. The rise of mobile banking is a great example of innovation enhancing financial inclusion. According to a report by the International Finance Corporation, mobile money accounts are more popular among women in regions like Sub-Saharan Africa, where access to traditional banking is limited. Various fintechs provide financial literacy resources, helping women understand financial products, budgeting, and saving strategies. Other solutions include AI-driven platforms that offer personalized recommendations and advice, empowering women to make informed financial decisions. Aside from personal apps and solutions, fintechs can facilitate community-based lending and saving initiatives, allowing women to support each other through group savings or microfinance schemes, fostering a sense of solidarity and shared purpose. This International Women’s Day’s theme is "accelerate action". In my mind, nothing accelerates action like innovation. As we mark International Women's Day, let’s advocate and innovate to enhance financial inclusion for women worldwide. #IWD2025 #financialInclusion Papaya Global

𝐑𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐚𝐲 𝐖𝐞 𝐒𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐄𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐚:                                    Only about 35% of adults in Ethiopia have access to formal financial services. That means the majority of people still operate outside the banking system relying on cash, informal lenders, or savings groups to manage their money. In a country of over 120 million people, this gap represents both a challenge and a massive opportunity. Mobile money platforms like Telebirr and Coopay are starting to reshape this reality. They’re not just conveniences, they’re lifelines for those who’ve never stepped into a bank branch. With a few taps, users can send and receive money, pay for services, or begin to build a financial history. These tools are creating a bridge between Ethiopia’s formal economy and the everyday lives of its citizens. But inclusion is more than just access, it’s about understanding and trust. Financial literacy remains low, particularly in rural areas and among women and youth. And even as services grow, many people hesitate to engage with them due to lack of awareness or confidence. For Ethiopia’s financial sector to thrive, it must go beyond infrastructure. It must invest in education, build trust, and tailor solutions to the realities of people’s lives. Imagine a country where a farmer in Sidama can access crop insurance, a woman in Bahir Dar can apply for a business loan, or a student in Mekelle can begin investing all with a smartphone. The foundation is there. Now it’s time to build systems that serve the whole nation. #FinancialInclusion #DigitalBanking #EconomicEmpowerment #MobileMoney #FinancialLiteracy #SmartMoneyEthiopia #TebaConnects

In the U.S., sending money means Zelle®, Venmo, or Apple Pay In much of Africa, it means Mobile Money — and it’s even more powerful. 📲 With just a basic mobile phone (no smartphone needed), millions of people in Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Ghana, and Senegal can: - Send & receive money instantly - Pay bills and school fees - Save… and even invest All without ever opening a traditional bank account. Over 60% of adults in West Africa are unbanked, but they’re not excluded. Mobile money has filled the gap — fast, cheap, and deeply embedded in daily life. Now imagine when that infrastructure connects to digital investment tools. That’s where Daba comes in. We’re helping anyone — including people that were financially disconnected as well as the diaspora abroad — access stocks, bonds, mutual funds and more… all with the tools they already use. 🌍 Africa isn’t copying legacy systems. It’s leapfrogging them — straight into mobile-led financial inclusion. The opportunity is massive. And it’s happening now. Daba is proud to power this transformation. We’re not just enabling access to capital markets — we’re helping build a new generation of African investors. 👇🏽 Curious how it all works? Let’s talk about mobile money, investing, and why Africa is the growth story of the decade. #Fintech #InvestInAfrica #MobileMoney #FinancialInclusion #DabaFinance #AfricaRising #EmergingMarkets #InclusiveGrowth #orangemoney #mtn #orange #Moov #wave

📱 Apple Pay? Cute. East Africa’s Been Doing It Longer—With Mobile Minutes. In the early 2000s, millions of people across East Africa had no access to banks, no credit cards, and no reliable currency systems. But they did have something else: Prepaid mobile phones. What happened next was revolutionary: People started using mobile minutes like money. • You could send airtime to someone instead of cash • Pay for groceries, transport, or rent with a few taps • Store value in your SIM card like a digital wallet The telecom companies noticed. They didn’t wait for government approval. They created mobile money systems—like M-PESA Africa in Kenya—that let users send, receive, and store money directly from their phones. All you needed was a basic mobile phone and a signal. No bank. No internet. No app. No iPhone or Google phone. By the time Apple Pay launched in 2014, East Africa had already been doing mobile payments for 7 years. Today: • Over 1 billion mobile money accounts in Africa • 98% of Kenyan adults use mobile money • Mobile minutes laid the foundation for Africa’s fintech dominance Africa led the way—not because it could, but because it had to. This is what innovation from necessity looks like. #AfricaTech #MobileMoney #DigitalCurrency #M_Pesa #EastAfrica #FinancialInclusion #ApplePayWho #LeapfrogInnovation