A coalition of nonprofits and tech companies has come together for the formation of Mojaloop Foundation to make it easier for developing countries to build real-time digital payments systems. The foundation aims at creating an interoperable payment platform, connecting digital financial service providers and customers by providing specifications, standards and open-source software. Coil, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google, ModusBox, Omidyar Network, and The Rockefeller Foundation have joined the organization as the initial Sponsor members.
According to the World Bank’s Global Findex, 1.7 billion people still lack access to digital financial services despite mobile money services emerging in nearly 100 countries. The main problem for this being lack of interoperability between digital financial services and payment platforms. Building interoperable systems that are inclusive to all can be costly and complicated. The foundation will serve as a blueprint for how to simplify and reduce the cost of payment interoperability so that banks and other providers can develop tools that meet the needs of emerging markets and the unbanked.
