Week of March 16, 2015

1. Savings Groups: In an evaluation of savings group outreach programs in Kenya, NGO-led groups had better attendance rates, saved more, had larger payouts, and lower rates of reported loss than groups formed spontaneously.  FSD Kenya

2. Mobile Money:  Kenya may be the current media darling when it comes to mobile money, but Tanzania's success story is due for its share of the spotlight.  CGAP

3. Poverty in the US:  "Our economy increasingly requires that people be flexible in the workplace, understand more complex processes, and communicate and work well with others. As consumers, many people living in poverty aren’t prepared to manage all the choice and temptations in the marketplace, such as mortgages, auto loans, and cell-phone plans."  Stanford Social Innovation Review

4. Sharing Economy:  Will low-income consumers benefit most from new peer-to-peer rental marketplaces or will they face barriers to growth and prosperity as microentrepreneurs?  The Washington Post

5. Payments:  Facebook announced it is adding a payments feature to its messenger app that allows American users to link their debit cards to the service and send money as easily as sending text.   The New York Times

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