Innovating Financial Services and Up-Skilling for the Last Mile

TOPICS

Inclusive Digital Economies

FIW Year

2024

Transcripts:

English

Spanish

French

Summary + Key Insights

A live panel discussed innovating financial services and upskilling for underserved communities, focusing on the importance of collaborative solutions for financial inclusion.

🌐 Global Perspectives: Financial inclusion challenges are shared across regions, indicating a universal need for innovative solutions that can be collaboratively developed.

🤝 Collaboration is Key: Effective financial inclusion requires partnerships among governments, private sectors, and NGOs to create a supportive ecosystem for underserved communities.

💻 Technology as a Catalyst: Digital tools like mobile banking and AI can significantly enhance access to financial services for last-mile beneficiaries, making transactions easier and safer.

📊 Verticalized Financial Products: Tailoring financial services to specific sectors (like agriculture or retail) ensures that products meet the unique needs of micro and small businesses.

🎓 Financial Literacy Matters: Providing targeted financial education is essential for empowering communities to utilize financial services effectively and confidently.

🔄 Feedback Mechanisms: Continuous engagement with beneficiaries is crucial in refining financial products and ensuring they are relevant and effective.

🌱 South-South Learning: Sharing successful strategies and solutions across regions can foster innovation and adaptability, enhancing global financial inclusion efforts.

This session summary was AI-generated using NoteGPT.

In an era marked by unprecedented financial challenges in low and middle-income countries, underserved populations—such as women, youth, and refugees—are particularly vulnerable to economic shocks. This panel will explore how innovations in financial education and the development of inclusive financial services have been crucial in translating broad upskilling strategies into actual resilience improvements among these groups. By drawing on best practices in last-mile program development and delivery, panelists will share successful real-world examples of strategic targeting, inclusive product development, and alternative learning approaches that have empowered communities to endure economic shocks. Participants will leave with actionable strategies to implement similar programs in their own regions.

Session Speakers

Carlos Corominas

Head of Inclusive Impact & Sustainability, LAC, Visa

Executive with more than 30 years of experience in the payments industry. Currently leading Visa’s Social Impact & Sustainable team in the LAC Region enabling micro- and small-enterprises to thrive, supporting financial and digital Inclusion of individuals and Small Business owners as well as promoting environmental, social and governance actions. Mr. Corominas previously was responsible for the small business segment growth in the whole LAC Region, where he provided support and guidance to Financial Instituttions about developing and implementing payment solutions for SMBs. Prior to joining Visa, Mr. Corominas was owner and CEO of PRIM, S.C. where he provided consulting services and training to small businesses in order to increase their revenues, improve their problem resolution and automation processes, prepare them for audit certification (ISO 9000) and improve their employee skills and abilities. Mr. Corominas also worked as Project Leader for Bancomer S.A. in Mexico City, where he was responsible for POS and ATM projects, chip card implementation and consulting services for several banking areas,. Carlos Corominas holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Actuarial Science from the National University of Mexico. He speaks Spanish (native) and is fluent in English and Portuguese. Carlos lives in Miami where Visa has his LAC Hub and in his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family (wife, two kids and two dogs), playing sports (soccer, tennis, raquet ball), traveling, watching movies and listening to music.

Patsian Low

Head of Inclusive Impact & Sustainability, Asia Pacific, Visa

Patsian is a driven senior leader who brings over 25 years of cross geographic and cross industry experience, offering executive leadership, advisory services, project design/management, and training in social entrepreneurship/social investment, impact philanthropy, corporate social impact and non-profit strategy. To provide the highest impact, she draws from her knowledge of private and civic sectors in US and Asia, crossing the fields of social finance, social entrepreneurship, philanthropy, non-profit leadership and commercial finance. Patsian currently works closely with Visa’s Asia Pacific business to develop and execute its impact and sustainability strategy. She ensures connection between regional priorities and Visa’s global programs, introduces new regional initiatives and partnerships, and drives employee engagement efforts. She was previously Chief of Staff at AVPN, Asia’s largest social investment network, where she led teams to mobilise more capital towards key development priorities like Climate Action and Gender Equality, developed signature policy programs and policy engagement, and supported the CEO in addressing strategic priorities. Prior to this role, she was Senior Vice President and head of DBS Foundation and DBS Bank CSR; and before that, Patsian was the Director of Philanthropy at Singapore’s NVPC, which promotes and engages philanthropy from different donor sectors. She had curated several cohorts of the Company of Good Fellowship before returning as a mentor for the last few years. Patsian currently serves on the boards of Artswok Collaborative Ltd, which brings community art to advance social development; and is a Management Committee member of the Lien Center for Social Innovation, based in Singapore Management University. She is an Advisor to Tri-Sector Associates, a Pay-For-Success incubation and structuring firm. She had also consulted with Johnson & Johnson to implement its new CSR strategy in North Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia and Australia/New Zealand. Before her journey into the civic sector began by starting a social enterprise advisory service in Asia’s social economy’s early years, Patsian held regional senior executive roles in Bankers Trust Company, Deutsche Bank and State Street Bank based out of New York, Hong Kong and Singapore. Patsian is married to Johann Annuar, co-founder and Executive Director of Engineering Good, and they have two lively daughters who cannot wait to change the world. They are based in Singapore.

Kritee Sharrma

Partnerships Lead, ITC SheTrades

Kritee Sharrma is the Head of Partnerships for the SheTrades Initiative at the International Trade Centre, a joint agency of the United Nations and the World Trade Organization. In her role, Kritee leads strategic partnerships that drive the economic inclusion of women and girls globally. She collaborates with governments, private sector leaders, and international organizations to co-design and implement programmes that promote sustainable development and champion women-led SMEs across Africa, the Gulf, Latin America, and Asia. She holds a Master’s in International Affairs from the Graduate Institute, Geneva, and a Bachelor’s in Economics from the University of Delhi, India.

Corentin Larue

Managing Director, FUNDES Catalyst

Corentin Larue is a Managing Director and Co-Founder at Fundamental, a venture studio focused on solving fundamental problems in LATAM. Prior to this role, Corentin was the Managing Director of FUNDES Catalyst and held various positions at FUNDES International, including Director of Growth and Associate Director of FUNDES Strategy. Corentin also has experience in development aid and research projects, including roles at Ministère des Affaires étrangères et du Développement international, Shanghai Institute for International Studies, and FIFA TMS GmbH. With a Master’s degree in International Affairs and International Development, Corentin has a strong background in developing strategic partnerships and business solutions.

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