1. Savings: FAI affiliate Ignacio Mas challenges us to step back from usage data and rethink how we approach the development of savings products for the poor. Center for Financial Inclusion
2. Behavioral Economics: According to Helaine Olen, Americans' financial woes have "more to do with the outside economy than their inner psyche." Bloomberg
3. Payments: New research presents findings on who is using prepaid debit cards and why. One suprising finding? it's not necessarily the unbanked - 7 in 8 users have or previously had a checking account. The Pew Charitable Trusts
4. Remittances: The latest report on remittance prices shows the global average cost of sending money is 8.36% - a new all-time low. The World Bank
5. Research Methods: How to tell if measuring impact is valuable or if you're just going through the (costly) motions. Standford Social Innovation Review
Editor's Note:
If you were hoping that the faiV would be a pleasant distraction from the overwhelming flow of AI-related content, sorry. For the record, the faiV had “ai” built in before Anthropic existed. And a housekeeping note: we’ve finally jumped ship from Mailchimp to NYU’s mailing platform—I guess if you’re reading this it’s been a seamless transition and if you’re not, well, you’re not. Feedback on the faiV’s content and format and delivery methods is always welcome, just drop me an email.
- Tim Ogden