Mobile payments, digital wallets, and other forms of financial technology (fintech) have seen widespread adoption in the West, but fintech has a whole new meaning for the developing world. Because of the largely unbanked populations in emerging markets, fintech companies serving those markets are facing a unique opportunity (and challenge) to entirely skip a whole generation of financial services (i.e., banks, cards) and rethink the payments ecosystem as it moves away from cash. Take Africa, for example. As much as 80 percent of the continent is unbanked and up to 90 percent of retail payments are made using cash, meaning that the disruption opportunity for fintech startups is massive. Read more: venturebeat.com
