Financial Slavery
BANKING THE UNBANKED
Technology has enabled new forms of financial slavery to emerge in recent years. What can be done?
Half the world is scraping by day-to-day without a bank account.
This reality robs billions of people of financial security and access to capital. This lack of good options forces many to employ moneylenders and loan sharks, trapping them in a vicious cycle of cascading debt.
Technology enabled new forms of financial slavery to emerge. Today, modern-day moneylenders trap borrowers in a cycle of debt, threatening to destroy their lives if they miss a payment. Usury goes back as far as time, but today’s challenges require new solutions.
Commercial banks continue to provide increasingly better service to their customers, but billions have been left behind.
How are Christians banking the unbanked?
“‘Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan, I will now arise,’ says the Lord; ‘I will place him in the safety for which he longs.’” Psalm 12:5
PICSA is improving the financial well-being of victimized laborers in South Africa.
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The Microlending Suicide Epidemic
One decade ago, a string of suicides in India revealed borrowers felt their only escape from their debtors was to end their own lives.
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Who Is Behind West Africa's Loan Shark Mafia?
For years, a shadowy Chinese loan shark syndicate has torn a trail of havoc across weakly regulated West African jurisdictions. Finally, we get to see exactly who is running Phillips Consulting.
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34% of Christians Have Taken Out a Payday Loan
Cumulatively, the payday lending industry as of 2010 collected $3.5 billion every year in fees alone. This makes it increasingly difficult for borrowers to make ends meet, for families to put food on the table, and for whole communities to thrive.
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12 Million People in 70 Countries Benefit From Savings Groups
Researchers at Yale University researched the impact of savings groups among the rural poor and found that “savings and business income increase, but importantly there is also a boost in women’s empowerment.”
Take action. Change lives.
Below you’ll find some of the best-in-class organizations that are working to renew the imagination. These organizations are trustworthy, effective and innovative. In a world full of choices, we want to make the complex accessible. So, we invite you to explore them and consider giving and investing. Or you might consider building your own venture.
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Who is relieving poverty every 60 seconds...
Vision Fund, World Vision's microfinance services provider. The world's largest Christian microfinance network, Vision Fund empowers rural entrepreneurs—people with no access to financial services—with small loans to unlock the potential for their small businesses to grow. Giving clients the training and support they need provides them with a sustainable income that enables their children to grow up with improved education, nutrition, health and shelter.
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Can entrepreneurship blossom in war-torn East Africa...
Seed Effect believes that it can. Operating out of Uganda and serving South Sudanese refugees, Seed Effect provides savings and loan group training, facilitates Bible study groups, and empowers entrepreneurs. In so doing, they foster self-sustainability and transform lives and communities for lasting change.
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How do we help without hurting...
By healing brokenness at the roots. Helping the poor isn't just about giving them stuff. Founded by the author of When Helping Hurts, The Chalmers Center offers tools to help ministries and churches think differently about poverty—and do something about it. They equip teams to improve an existing ministry or launch a new one using their proven curriculum and biblical framework for poverty alleviation.
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What role do dreams play in overcoming poverty...
Dreams, if invested in, offer sustainability. Hope International is a Christ-centered financial service providing discipleship training savings and loans that underserved families need to break the cycle of poverty. We offer these services through three approaches: Savings group programs Microfinance institutions and Small-and-medium-enterprise (SME) lending.
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What can best help people transition out of poverty...
Jobs. That's why CrossPurpose offers free training and certifications in high-demand fields, from tech to healthcare and the culinary world. Over 5,000 individuals are living proof of the work of CrossPurpose. They have walked with these individuals, helping them become the best version of themselves through career coaching. They don't consider it a success until their neighbors get jobs paying $19/hr or more.
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TrustBridge Giving Space
Keep discovering vetted opportunities at TrustBridge Giving Space, which helps donors send money to charities around the world.
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How many people in developing countries lack access to financial services...
29%—almost one-third, according to the World Bank. Women, in particular, are often excluded from financial services and as a result, are vulnerable to economic disenfranchisement. Thankfully, access has been expanding over the past few years, and that’s due in part to the work of microfinance institutions like Creation Investments. In 2023 alone, Creation Investments served 44.4 million unbanked or underbanked clients around the world—20.2 million of which were women—creating value for both people and their communities.
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How much does the African economy grow by each year...
$150 billion. A significant part of that growth comes from emerging large-scale businesses in the fields of agriculture, retail, and financial technology. But these companies need money, they need guidance, and they need technology. Verdant Frontiers is providing for those needs—supporting businesses, uplifting their employees, and creating $180 million in value in just under a decade.
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What pushed a 24-year-old in Pune to kill her grandmother and steal her jewelry...
Debt. According to the Times of India, she owed $180 to lenders who were blackmailing her with “morphed” photos. Predatory lending schemes are growing increasingly common across Asia, with lenders often resorting to harassment, threats, and invented interest charges to get their way. In this fraught environment, transparent financial services are more important than ever. Endowus is providing people with the tools to make better decisions with their money. Their fees are upfront, their incentives are world-class, and their advice is honest, transparent, and conflict-free.
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What's like Shark Tank for faith-driven entrepreneurs without being cutthroat...
The Faith Driven Investor Marketplace. This platform is a free tool for accredited, faith-driven investors looking to put capital to work. Funds and deals that go on the platform are at the discretion of a group of faith-driven investors with experience ranging across all different asset classes. Whether a multi-million dollar real estate venture or a small business, concessionary capital or a high financial return profile, Marketplace connects investors and entrepreneurs.
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What if Christian entrepreneurs didn't have to be alone...
Now, they don't have to be. Faith Driven Entrepreneur helps Christ-following entrepreneurs find their community and fulfill their God-given call to create. They do this by providing inspiring content and sparking meaningful connections between like-minded entrepreneurs and investors.
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What's wrong with doing things right...
It’s not enough. The ethical way says, “I win, you win.” But the redemptive way says, “I sacrifice, we win.” To this end, Praxis is a venture-building ecosystem advancing redemptive entrepreneurship. They support founders, funders, and innovators motivated by their faith to address the major issues of our time.
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What is limiting to a leader's potential...
Isolation. Faith-driven, results-minded CEOs and executives meet in C12 Business Forums monthly to encourage and challenge one another. These groups of peers work together to make better decisions, avoid costly mistakes, and create solid plans for business growth, all while striving to create eternal impact far beyond the bottom line.
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What happened to the family macademia nut business...
Sinapis' business training turned this business on the brink of failure into a source of livelihood for Kenyan workers. Sinapis provides training, ongoing opportunities ,vibrant community, and faith-based principles to Christian entrepreneurs in Africa, Asia, and Central America. Its alumni report an average increase of 138% in revenue 1 year after graduation.
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What percent of startups fail...
90%. One out of 10 startups fail within the first year. And most of them fail due to avoidable mistakes. Founders navigating potential pitfalls on their own is hard, though. OCEAN is a training community for entrepreneurs that integrates practical business skills with biblical wisdom so that entrepreneurs can start and lead a sustainable business without the pressure of figuring it out alone.
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What if you had to leave your kids for 2,555 nights...
This is the reality for many Filipinos who leave to their families to build a brighter future for their kids. What if they didn’t have to? Dream Bigger Ventures empowers Filipino Founders to grow as leaders who will have the character, community, and competency to solve seemingly impossible problems with sustainable ventures.
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What does "ziwani" mean in Swahili...
"At the lake." In the same vein, the nonprofit Ziwani represents a place of refreshment, community, and commerce for Christian business leaders in Africa. It equips and partners with the Christian business community so that they can meaningfully and practically live out their marketplace calling on the African continent.
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What continent has the world's youngest and fastest-growing workforce...
Africa. Future Africa is working to increase the continent’s 3% contribution to global GDP by investing in global businesses that will lead the digital economy. They've raised 2 unicorns, have 6 exits, deployed $10M+ in 106 portfolio companies and $1B+ in follow-on capital.
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