Week of February 2, 2015

1. Mobile Banking: Rural customers in India rely on local bank agents and business correspondents to open new accounts. But the requirement (and cost incurred) for holding cash to cover withdrawals during busy periods is not worth the banking agents' while. Could mobile money pose a solution?  The Economist

2. Microcredit: What happens when microcredit clients default? The answer depends mostly on where they live.  Smart Campaign

3. Regulation and Development:  Hernando de Soto played a major role in putting property rights on the development agenda. Planet Money profiles him, where his ideas came from, and the impact they've had.  NPR's Planet Money

4. Bitcoin:  The recent collapse of bitcoin prices and the introduction of third-party agents to process transactions is leaving many in the cryptocurrency community disillusioned. Is this the beginning of the end for bitcoin?  Financial Times

5. Debt: Croatia canceled the debts of over 300,000 of its poorest citizens, allowing them to access their blocked bank accounts. However, some economists are concerned that if lenders think mass debt relief is a future possibility, they will charge low-income borrowers very high interest rates.  Washington Post

October 13, 2026

Financial Access Initiative

The Swarm Edition

Editor’s Note: I’m going to assume that you are seeing plenty of AI content (news and papers, not AI slop, though I’m sure you’re getting plenty of that too) from other sources, so I’m trying to think hard about the marginal value that the faiV can provide. As far as I’ve gotten so far: a) make sure that directly AI-related content does not take up more than 2 of the 5 items, and b) try to focus specifically on the cybersecurity issue for financial inclusion. Beyond that, I’m open to feedback on the value you get from the faiV in relation to AI to help guide us in the future. On a different note, I’ll be making a brief cameo appearance at the e-MFP Inclusive Finance Conference to moderate the opening plenary. If you haven’t registered, do so and I hope to see you there! - Tim Ogden

October 6, 2026

Laura Freschi

Rereading Michael Kremer

Ten years ago, FAI managing director Tim Ogden published Experimental Conversations, a collection of interviews with economists and other people who critique, promote, and use randomized controlled trials (RCTs) in development economics. One of the interviewees was Michael Kremer, a pioneer of the movement, now a Nobel laureate, and recently appointed Chief Economist of the World Bank.

August 13, 2026

The Massive DDoS Edition

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

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