Botswana shows why financial inclusion no longer has to start with a bank account
Botswana's financial inclusion puzzle: Mukuru's new Visa card lets users spend from their mobile wallets, bypassing traditional bank accounts for everyday purchases.
Botswana has a financial inclusion problem that looks less like an issue of access to technology. Mobile phones are everywhere. Financial services are available on those phones, and mobile money is widely used. Yet traditional bank accounts reach only 58% of adults. That contradiction is what makes Mukuru’s latest move in Botswana interesting. The financial services company has launched a Visa-branded Companion Card linked to its Mukuru Wallet. The card allows customers to spend money stored in their wallets for everyday purchases at Visa-accepting merchants without first transferring it into a conventional bank account. With the Mukuru Wallet, customers already manage their money from their phones.