Digital Bulk Payments

Kap Tower's founders have extensive experience designing and implementing digital payment initiatives - including in the coffee value chain for the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) in Uganda. These projects are the fastest way to drive digital financial services to a large user base. If structured correctly, they allow payees to build a credit history, access savings and lending, and maintain better control of their financial lives. They also enable payers to reduce risk, increase transparency and accountability, and achieve greater efficiency in their operations.

Women and Financial Services

Kap Tower's founder Amani M'Bale is helping develop the gender strategy to increase women's access to financial services for a division of the United Nations operating in the Pacific. For this effort, Amani is developing the tools to assess where and how gender equity can be achieved in financial services programs.

Human Centered Design and Digital Payments

Kap Tower is working with IDEO.org, a leading human centered design firm to support the implementation of effective and well-designed payments in agriculture value chains in Uganda. These efforts will increase the efficiency of the payment process, and facilitate increased uptake by lessening the burden on staff making payments and boosting the usability for farmers.

Economic Impact Studies

Kap Tower's founders have worked on a number of studies to quantify the impact of technology in emerging markets, including the economic impact of mobile technology on women and the importance of trade in mobile and other technology on emerging market economic development. The focus of these studies is to capture the potential benefits that can accrue from the spread of technology.

Mobile Money for Refugees and the Displaced

Anne Craib and Amani M'Bale have worked for and advised a number of global organizations, including mobile network operators (MNOs), NGOs and foundations about when, if and how to use mobile money for humanitarian cash transfers. Their work is focused primarily on refugee and displaced populations in Africa and Asia. Mobile cash transfers can be the most effective means to reach these vulnerable populations in many instances, but organizations must first do their homework. Successful deployments require not only adequate infrastructure and services - including a liquid agent network - but also an understanding of the context, including such factors as literacy and numeracy, phone ownership, the impact of gender differences on access to payments, and familiarity with such things as PIN numbers.