CGD Policy Blogs

Kenya has instituted a new tax that affects users of M-Pesa -- a widely popular phone-based money transfer service used by more than half of Kenya’s adult population. The new 10 percent excise duty on fees charged for money transfer services applies to mobile phone providers, banks, and other money transfer agencies. Operated by Safaricom, the largest mobile network operator in Kenya, M-Pesa accounts for the largest share of users of money transfer services. Users of M-Pesa products will therefore bear most of the impact of the tax.

On May 22nd, members of the Latin American Shadow Financial Regulatory Committee (CLAAF) convened at CGD to discuss some of the most pressing fiscal and monetary issues affecting Latin American economies. The result of the committee’s two-and-a-half-day-long discussion was a four page statement and several clear recommendations for rethinking financial policies in the midst of a global crisis.

Back in 2009, my colleague Liliana Rojas-Suarez convened a meeting at CGD of a task force that would draft Policy Principles for Expanding Financial Access. Attendees included Jonathan Morduch of NYU; and Nachiket Mor of the IFMR Trust, who brought along Bindu Ananth.

Congratulations to our colleague Liliana Rojas-Suarez, named by the Peruvian Chamber of Commerce as economist of the year.  Past winners include Hernando de Soto and Julio Velarde of Peru.  The annual award recognizes Liliana’s many contributions on financial sector challenges and related development issues in emerging market econo