Benjamin Williams

As I’ve discussed here before, a key challenge we face in Latin America is our low rate of banking penetration. Common barriers for unbanked consumers include high fees, long distances for those in remote cities to the nearest bank branch, and lack of proof of income or a fixed address. And while these barriers aren't going away, new technologies are making them m…

Last year, Brazilian banks lost half a billion dollars to electronic fraud, according to the latest figures from the Brazilian Banks Federation (Febraban). Febraban plans to disclose full details at its CIAB 2012 event next month, but clearly, electronic fraud is a growing concern. Indeed, that figure is a 30% increase from 2010 losses. What’s causing this? In large p…

At a recent collections and recovery webinar that I co-presented, I polled attendees to find out what area they felt could be improved to drive the biggest C&R gains. An overwhelming 50% said it was technology. Process also emerged as a key theme, coming in second at 18.2%. These results are quite telling because, even though it was an informal poll, the group inc…

Cards International recently published a country survey of Colombia and its potential for banking growth. They note that banks are profitable there and have low levels of non-performing loans. The banking industry appears to be poised for expansion in a market where only 57.6% of the 45 million people have a bank account.With such low rates of banking penetration, the…

After decades of very low banking penetration, the Peruvian banking market appears to be poised for growth. Up to now, around 70% of Peruvians have been outside of the official banking system, making banking penetration one of the lowest in Latin America. Why? Few have a regular job, and most don’t qualify for a bank account, with 34% of the population living in extre…

Although the use of positive bureau data for credit decisions is quite new in Latin America, it’s gaining increased visibility. In Brazil, a bill creating a positive bureau was signed by president Dilma Rousseff just months ago, after an eight-year fight. The bill will take time to be fully implemented, but as in other countries, the benefits will unquestionably be w…