Access isn’t
inclusion.
Agency is.
Defy works with governments, regulators and international agencies to nurture national inclusive finance ecosystems and regional collaboration that turn access into agency.
Building inclusive finance markets, country by country, to foster economic growth and resilience.
building blocks in every ecosystem: infrastructure, regulation, providers
impact dimensions: we measure agency, not accounts
core technology solutions for a modern inclusive finance infrastructure
Three building blocks, one ecosystem.
Every national ecosystem we nurture rests on the same three foundations, designed with public and private partners from day one.
InfrastructureInteroperable rails
Interoperable rails and open standards across banks, mobile operators, fintechs and public systems.
RegulationA framework that fits
Policy clinics and sandboxes that give inclusive finance a regulatory framework designed for it.
ProvidersAn ecosystem of providers
Inclusive finance service providers, built and scaled through the collaboration of all stakeholders, serving people where they are.
“Inclusive finance is not charity, nor compliance. It is about governing the institutions where the rulebook doesn’t quite fit.”
Isabelle Lessedjina
Chair, Defy Consortium
From strategy to lasting impact.
We convene the stakeholders who rarely sit at the same table, co-design national inclusion priorities with them, and run pilots that are independently verified before they scale.
A national blueprint
We bring all stakeholders to one table to help governments set the national strategy, its priorities, infrastructure and regulatory framework.
Pilots built to scale
We build, test and transfer the infrastructure, with clear stage gates and independent safeguards reviews before anything scales.
Measured on agency
We orchestrate and measure what the ecosystem changes for people. We help governments update the national strategy as the evidence comes in.
Launch a national
inclusive finance ecosystem.
Regulation, funding and technology alone do not nurture an inclusive finance ecosystem. An ecosystem is a socio-technical network, and its foundations have to be right from the start and let it learn its way towards directional goals.
The programme is open to partners across Sub‑Saharan Africa.
- 01
Expression of interest
A ministry, regulator or agency shares its national priorities.
- 02
Policy clinics
Together we define the framework, safeguards and consumer redress.
- 03
Co-designed pilot
Partners, stakeholders and Defy co-design a pilot tailored to national priorities.
- 04
Infrastructure build
Defy Consortium builds the digital public-private infrastructure with the regulator. It can draw on Defy Ventures for missing components.
- 05
Safeguards review
Independent check before anything scales.
- 06
National roll-out
Standards, playbooks and investment-ready plans for national scale.
Shape the next generation
of finance.
Inclusive finance is a financial and fintech segment in its own right. It needs interoperable infrastructure across sectors and a regulatory framework designed for it. Defy members develop and put into practice the policies that let an ecosystem of inclusive finance service providers emerge and grow.
We bring together regulators, policymakers and experts to build a healthy market for inclusive finance, one that drives economic development and resilience.
Be part of the change.
Inclusive finance is a complementary, not a competing, priority.
- Co-design the cross-sector infrastructure
- Shape a regulatory framework fit for purpose
- Position your organisation in a new ecosystem
Research and insights.
Help us write our next white paper.
Powering Inclusive Finance explores how Defy’s Global Unified Ledger can remove the systemic inefficiencies that keep inclusive finance from scaling. We welcome data, use cases, technical review and co-authors from providers, regulators and funders.