A.Little.World Promotes Financial Inclusion of unbanked and under-banked in India
A.Little.World (www.alittleworld.com) has leveraged new generation technologies, mobile networks and a last mile local entrepreneurship ecosystem to integrate a micro-banking model with a brand-new multi-bank payment network (ZERO) for inclusion of the vast un-banked population into mainstream banking. Unlike the presently established payment networks which have come to prominence with a top down approach, ZERO is building its foundation on commercial deployment at the bottom of the pyramid. ZERO collaborates with leading banks, banking regulators and Government to identify opportunities, gaps and bring about broad consensus on standards and processes for Financial Inclusion in India.
A.Little.World works closely with the ZERO Microfinance and Savings Support Foundation (an not-for-profit Section 25 Company in India) to deliver results on the ground.ZERO-Mass Foundation (ZMF) provides field operations for ZERO in a not-for-profit model, as a Business Correspondent to multiple Banks (ZMF is presently a Business Correspondent to 7 Banks).ZMF manages the field force, card issuance, appointment of Customer Service Points, management of cash and all other logistics at the last mile. ZERO-Mass in turn collaborates with strongly placed local organizations, district and State administration to ensure smooth deployment and operations.
The technology focus of ALW is on biometrics based ID, RFID smart cards (Java, PKI) and NFC (Near Field Communication) mobile phones as acceptance and enabling devices (with merchants, field forces of MFIs and as cashless ATMs). The technology and business vision is to be able to reach the un-banked through human networks with technology deployed to maximum advantage. A.Little.World also focuses on ordinary consumer mobile phones linked to the RFID card for providing a range of value added information services linked to the ZERO payment system.
Over 250 million people are targeted across India under the Financial Inclusion initiative. ALW and ZMF are working on a pilot basis in 7 States with State Bank of India (India.s largest commercial Bank with 90 million customers as a Group). These include six North Eastern States, Uttarakhand and Andhra Pradesh.
ALW and ZMF are also project partners with 6 Banks (State Bank of India, Union Bank of India, UTI Bank, Andhra Bank, State Bank of Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh Grameen Vikas Bank) in a unique collaborative project with the Government of Andhra Pradesh and Reserve Bank of India to deliver basic banking services to villages through its ZERO platform for branchless banking. The project has gone live in the Warangal District of Andhra Pradesh. The target groups are social security pensioners and wage seekers under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA).
A.Little.World
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May 21, 2008
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