the mif blog

I am fascinated by debt: the advance of cash today against the mere promise of payment in the future.  A promise that depends crucially on trust and knowing who the borrower is. For that, financial institutions rely mainly on credit bureaus. But not every country has a perfectly functioning credit bureau, in which case access to credit suffers.

Businesses have been using online customer service for a while.  It is a popular channel because is fast and easy to use―it requires minimal effort from the customer, which increases the likelihood of completing the task that they are up to complete. 

I wrote some days ago about one of the selected FinTechs that will integrate to Finconecta―a 10-month pilot program in partnership with a&b, that FOMIN/IDB is partially financing. I wrote about the US$21.84 billion losses (in 2015) due to credit and debit card fraud worldwide. But this figure is just the tip of the iceberg.  

I recently heard a podcast (HBR IdeaCast) where Jerry Seinfeld shared his insights into innovation. One of his comments stuck with me: “it’s very important to know what you don’t like. It’s good to have an idea, but a big part, I find, of a lot of innovation starts with someone saying: ‘you know what I am really sick of?’ That’s where innovation begins.”