Case Study Details - The EDISON Alliance - Resolving the Core Tension of Impact-Focused Fintech: A Viable Model for Reaching Rural Women with Digital Financial Services

IDEO.org, with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and partnering with BRAC (a prominent international nonprofit working to empower disadvantaged communities in Bangladesh), bKash (Bangladesh’s leading mobile wallet and a subsidiary of BRAC Bank), and the Busara Center for Behavioral Economics, developed a project to increase access to digital financial services for women living in the Haor region of Bangladesh, by assisting them in downloading and using the bKash app. The mail goal is to create digital savings groups through which rural women in Bangladesh form “pods” of five or six members, who collectively agree on a weekly savings goal and meet each week to contribute money towards that goal, and to learn about navigating household finances and using digital financial services.

Impact / Outcome

With BRAC Shakti, the partnership between a DFS provider (bKash) and an NGO that has an existing rural presence (BRAC) has managed to break down the fundamental financial barriers currently preventing DFS providers from investing in rural women. In so doing, both parties benefit: bKash competitively acquires a loyal customer base in rural women, and BRAC achieves its mandate of reaching historically underserved populations – while also building a user base that can later participate in its own microfinance offerings. During the expanded pilot stage, BRAC is holding the reins and iterating on the BRAC Shakti model as it is put into practice by 5,000 women.

Funding sources

Private

Key Metrics

Reach rural women with digital financial services