Financial inclusion: Great potential for the future
UPDATE: November 26, 2024: Leslie Stahl's feature segments and profiles of people provided an update on this topic in "60 Minutes Rewind," titled "The Future of Money." 60 Minutes Rewind, titled The Future of Money
The future of money is becoming increasingly digital as faster financial technologies transform the concept of currency. Physical cash is being replaced by more abstract payment methods, which challenge traditional financial institutions. The ongoing evolution of M-Pesa highlights the potential of these advancements, showcasing a new era of financial possibilities
Leslie Stahl's feature segments and profiles of people in the news provided an update on this topic in "60 Minutes Rewind," titled "The Future of Money."
In 2015, Lesley Stahl traveled to Kenya, where the mobile money revolution was reshaping lives. Through the innovative platform M-Pesa, Kenyans could effortlessly send and receive money on their cell phones. This groundbreaking service not only boosted commerce but also delivered essential resources to underserved communities, making a significant impact on the lives of many.
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A country once where 90% of transactions done in cash. Kenya appears to have the economic edge over its African rivals, Nigeria, South Africa, and Ethiopia.
M-Pesa, a mobile money transfer service launched in Kenya in 2007 by telecommunications company Safaricom allowed people to send money via mobile messaging such as friends or family, and even to pay for goods and services. The system is simple in concept. In practice this means that carrying out business becomes much easier, contributing to increased productivity.
During the 2008 post-election violence people began to see M-Pesa as a safer place to store their money than mainstream banks. Its service funded by a small commission per transaction allows users to deposit, withdraw, transfer money to other users and non-users. Pay bills, purchase airtime and in some markets, transfer money between the service and a bank account. Mobile money of this kind has begun to diffuse to countries like Tanzania, India, and Afghanistan. Setting up a mobile phone network running M-Pesa becomes possible to distribute and control flows of cash such that affected people. There are significantly more M-Pesa outlets than ATMs and traditional banking system.
