Around 100 million people live in Ethiopia. More than three quarters do not have any access to banking services. The cashless money transfer and payment service (M-BIRR) provides an alternative to a bank branch by enabling payment by mobile phone (“mobile money”). DEG – Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH, is investing EUR 4m in the provider of the mobile money platform. By doing so, it is playing a part in improving access to banking services in Ethiopia on a wide scale. Other investors include the European Investment Bank (EIB). The Finnish development finance company Finnfund has been a shareholder in M-BIRR since as early as 2012.

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