DEG supports guidelines for responsible digital financial services

New technologies used in the area of financial services provide access to financing for households and small companies in developing countries. However, the "fintech revolution" also entails new challenges.

Facilitating access to digital financial services

More than 50 organisations – including development finance institutions such as IFC and DEG, commercial investors and fintechs – have therefore jointly developed "Guidelines for Investing in Responsible Digital Financial Services". The aim of these guidelines is to provide access to useful financial services at fair conditions. This is particularly important in developing countries, in which fintechs frequently target households with low incomes and micro-companies. At the same time, the new guidelines allow investors to tap into new investment fields and to manage risks more effectively.

The ten "Guidelines for Investing in Responsible Digital Financial Services" were officially presented at the "Connecting the Dots" conference in Amsterdam on 20 June 2018. The global fintech conference was organised by Goodwell, an investment company specialising in fintechs, together with IFC, DEG and the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The guidelines agreed upon include the promotion of transparent, fair conditions as well as the responsible use of personal information.

Opportunity for fintechs and investors to share experiences

The next step involves setting up a platform relating to responsible digital financial services so that investors and fintechs all over the world can interact and put the guidelines into practice.

Further information

An overview of the guidelines