RFF 2024

Bridging Inclusion and Innovation to Improve People’s Lives

July 2–3, 2024
Fortaleza, Brazil

The digital revolution has reshaped society, making critical services — especially financial solutions — more accessible. Yet, complex challenges persist. Approximately one third of the global population remains offline, threatening to exacerbate inequities between and within countries, and for consumers who have gained access, rising consumer protection risks such as fraud, data misuse, cyber-risks, and vulnerabilities produced by debt stress threaten to reverse progress by eroding financial health and re-excluding people from formal financial systems.

Today, building people’s resilience is not enough. Rather, we must work to help people improve their lives — in other words, prevent people from experiencing harms and build their trust to use formal financial services. Before digital financial services took the main stage, we addressed inclusive finance consumer protection risks by examining financial service providers’ behaviors and implementing guardrails through formal regulations and guidelines. However, this is no longer sufficient and there is now a growing need to examine how we design the digital building blocks that enable the delivery of financial services — Digital Public Infrastructure — and ensure that these systems can withstand shocks while continuing to innovate and meet future needs.

The 2024 Responsible Finance Forum in Fortaleza, Brazil will kickstart the conversations needed to spark systems-level change and achieve the responsible and equitable delivery of quality financial services, all while aiming to obtain the desired outcomes of safety, choice, trust, voice, and improved financial health for consumers.

Keynote Address

The Year in Review
Nataša Goronja, Managing Director, Center for Financial Inclusion

Coffee & Networking

Creating a Roadmap for Responsible Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI)

Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) is crucial for the delivery of digital financial services. However, unlike physical infrastructure, the digital world poses a complex web of challenges — ranging from governance, design, incentives to innovate, competition, and sustainability — as well as questions about whether we are reaching the desired outcomes for end users. As we increasingly turn our focus to building responsible DPI systems, the inclusive finance sector is now turning attention to “user-centric DPI”. Infrastructure design has the power to significantly shape user experience and outcomes. However, traditionally infrastructure design does not consider users during the early inception stages, and user-centricity is often left to the service providers who then design and deliver services built on the existing architecture.

This session first presents evidence on how DPI design and innovation can be tailored to different country contexts, and asks: How can we innovate to consider end user outcomes from the outset?

To better understand outcomes, the session will also present evidence from Kenya — a market that has seen significant growth in digital financial services and has become the poster child for the market systems approach. With Kenya now revisiting the idea of launching a digital ID as a pathway to DPI, this session will raise questions on what this potential change could mean for the cost to consumers and to firms that would need to realign their systems. Through a short presentation, we will explore insights from the Kenya research.

We will then preview the DPI Safeguards Framework that is being developed by the Office of the UN Secretary General’s Envoy on Technology (OSET) and UNDP. Attendees will have the opportunity to provide feedback and help shape the framework.

Lunch & Networking

Addressing Digital Credit Debt Stress: Lessons from Brazil and Other Markets

Digital credit has proven its power to unlock economic opportunities and help people improve their livelihoods. However, the rapid expansion of digital credit has often been accompanied by increasing debt stress, as well as other consumer protection challenges such as price shrouding, overcharging, predatory collections, and rising fraud. And increased debt stress can create wider social and political repercussions, including rising unrest, violent protests, and other actions that threaten to undo the benefits that financial inclusion that achieved over the past decade.

Many financial sector regulators are aware of these risks and recognize the importance of implementing appropriate monitoring mechanisms and regulatory interventions at an early stage to prevent risks to financial markets, consumers, and firms.

This session will discuss how we can identify the early warning signs and what actions to take when we suspect potential debt stress in a market. Considering the various perspectives from regulators, policymakers, and financial services providers, the panel will examine the challenges involved with regulatory or policy interventions as we continue to work on preventing overindebtedness in today’s digital world.

Coffee & Networking

Provider Postcards: Showcasing Innovative Approaches to Responsible Finance

This session will showcase provider-led innovative solutions that aim to achieve responsible outcomes for consumers. Four global providers will be invited to present their solutions in TED-talk style presentations.

New Frontiers in the Data Economy: Data Sharing, AI, and Regulation in Responsible Finance

In April 2024, 27 member states of the European Union unanimously endorsed the AI Act, affirming the agreement they reached in December 2023. The Act classifies AI according to risk and extensively regulates high-risk AI systems. While it is tempting to rely on regulations, the speed of innovative breakthroughs using AI will soon outpace regulations. This session raises important questions about how AI-based models will reach newly included population segments.

This session will delve into the dynamic relationship between AI innovation in inclusive finance and regulatory frameworks. It will dissect the current landscape of AI breakthroughs for inclusive finance as well as the state of play in regulation, acknowledging the inherent challenges of keeping pace with the breakneck speed of technological innovation. It will also discuss real-world consequences of regulatory lags, such as ethical dilemmas and bias amplification. The panelists will touch on the need for proactive, adaptive regulatory frameworks that anticipate future advancements, the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration between policymakers, technologists, ethicists, and consumers, and the imperative of leveraging AI to advance and not detract from financial inclusion.

1. How do we make sure that regulation is not reduced to a “checkbox” compliance exercise?

2. How do we ensure that regulations don’t reduce competitiveness in markets?

3. Finally, how do we build regulatory capacity to conduct periodic AI audits so emerging risks can be addressed?

Call to Action: Fireside Chat on Next Steps

This session will reflect on the day’s discussions and provide a call to action, outlining priorities from multi-stakeholder perspectives that need to be addressed over the next three years through the Responsible Finance Forum.

Closing Remarks

Cocktail Reception & Dinner

RFF 2024 AGENDA

2:00pm

Immersive Learning Visits

Brazil presents an excellent example of both the opportunities and the risks that come from rapid digitalization. In 2020, Brazil rolled out their PIX payments system — which allows Brazilian people, companies, and government entities to send or receive nearly instant payment transfers. Less than four years later, 140 million adults, approximately 80 percent of the country’s adult population, use PIX.

Yet, amid this exciting and rapid growth, there are also looming concerns. Recent reports indicate that nearly 72 million Brazilians — approximately one third of the country’s population — defaulted on their loans in 2023. And in a country where over half the population identify as Black or mixed race, one third live under the poverty line and are at risk of facing ‘algorithmic racism’. Furthermore, the country is home to 60 percent of the Amazon basin and faces significant risks from climate change which will likely exacerbate existing inequities in the country.

Fortaleza is in the northeast region of Brazil and routinely ranks low on socio-economic indicators and high on the risks for climate-related disasters. With this year’s RFF event taking place in Fortaleza, there is a rich opportunity to better understand the regional challenges the people and local government face, and to see first-hand how companies are innovating to address these obstacles.

RFF attendees are requested to sign up to visit one of three immersive learning experiences and learn more about how these entities are influencing responsible outcomes for consumers.

Day 1: Tuesday, July 2

Day 2: Wednesday, July 3

6:00pm

7:00pm

8:00am

9:40am

9:00am

9:20am

10:00am

10:30am

11:00am

1:00pm

2:15pm

3:30pm

4:00pm

5:00pm

6:00pm

6:45pm

7:00pm

Debrief from the Immersive Learning Visits

Reflecting on learnings from the immersive visits, this session will discuss what we can adopt from countries like Brazil and how we can innovate to create responsible outcomes for consumers.

Cocktail Reception and Dinner

Check-In

Welcome Remarks
Michael Schlein, President and CEO, Accion International

Host Country Opening Remarks

Speakers

Head of Financial Literacy and Financial Inclusion and Monitoring, Department for Financial Citizen Promotion, Central Bank of Brazil
Diogo Cruz works at the Central Bank of Brazil’s Department for Financial Citizenship Promotion. He is currently the head of the division in charge of financial literacy and financial inclusion research and monitoring. Along with his team, Diogo is responsible for publishing important reports, such as the Financial Citizenship Report, which shows the country’s outlook for financial inclusion, financial education, and financial consumer protection. Additionally, he is part of the Brazilian delegation for the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (G20/GPFI). Diogo holds a master’s degree in international development policy at Duke University.

Head of the Department for Financial Citizen Promotion, Central Bank of Brazil
Luis Mansur is the Head of the Department for Financial Citizenship Promotion at the Central Bank of Brazil. Working at the Central Bank since 1998, Luis has worked on various topics related to the Brazilian economy, finance, international relations, financial inclusion, and financial education. He also worked at the IMF from 2011 to 2013 as an advisor to the Executive Director of Brazil, where he took part in several negotiations and multilateral initiatives of the Brazilian government. Luis holds a master’s degree in public policy from the University of Michigan, a degree in Computer Science from the Catholic University of Brasília, and is a specialist in database systems. Luis is a member of the Brazilian Forum on Financial Education (FBEF) and is currently responsible for the GPFI Presidency, under the G20 Brazilian Presidency.

Deputy Governor for Institutional Relations, Citizenship, and Conduct Supervision, Central Bank of Brazil
Carolina Barros is the Deputy Governor for Institutional Relations, Citizenship, and Conduct Supervision for the Central Bank of Brazil. She focuses on conduct supervision of financial institutions — concerning both clients and the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorism financing, financial education, institutional relations, and communications with citizens, government, and media. Carolina holds a master’s in business administration from Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV) and a master’s degree in public administration and public policy from the University of York, United Kingdom.

Gabriel is a qualified chartered accountant and does consulting and advisory projects in the areas of credit market development, financial regulation, financial consumer protection credit bureaus and credit guarantee funds. He has previously worked as the first CEO of the National Credit Regulator, founder and CEO of the Micro Finance Regulatory Council, partner on the Deloitte & Touche Financial Institutions team, and the Small Enterprise Foundation, the leading micro-enterprise lender in South Africa. He has degrees in accounting, economics, and econometrics, a masters’ degree in development finance from the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague and an advanced diploma in banking from the University of Johannesburg.

Founder and CEO,
Integral: Governance Solutions
David is the founder and CEO of Integral: Governance Solutions, a boutique consultancy which supports enhanced collective decision making and change management in the areas of public private partnerships especially digital public infrastructure, ESG integration and tech startups.
David is a seasoned executive and entrepreneur who has founded or co-founded five organizations in the public and private sector but exited from an active role as each came to the next stage of their development. In addition to these five, David has advised on and been involved in the design, setup, executive management, and boards of a number of organizations engaged in digital development around the world.
Originally trained as an economist with a PhD from Yale University, David has domain knowledge in the areas of fintech and development finance, as well as edtech through his role as co-founder of the capacity building platform for professionals in the emerging world called Digital Frontiers.

Vice President, Center for Financial Inclusion
Edoardo works at the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI) as the Vice President of Research and Programs, where he oversees CFI’s thought leadership in the thematic areas of financial consumer protection, responsible data practices, and green inclusive finance. Prior to joining CFI, Edoardo worked for IFC’s venture capital team, where he promoted enabling environments and investment opportunities in embedded finance, startup ecosystems, and the digital economy. He also worked for the World Bank’s global financial inclusion unit, assisting regulators in leveraging data and developing strategies for financial inclusion and consumer protection. Edoardo has worked in Kenya as Research Economist for Financial Sector Deepening Kenya, a multi-donor program supporting the development of inclusive financial markets. Edoardo holds a PhD in development economics from the University of Trento and an MSc in international development studies from the University of Amsterdam.

President and CEO, Accion
Michael Schlein brings nearly 30 years of extensive international banking, management, and public service experience to his role as President and CEO of Accion. Michael joined Accion in 2007 as a member of its Board of Directors and in 2009, became Accion’s President and CEO. Prior to Accion, Michael served as President of Citigroup’s International Franchise Management, where he managed the bank’s network of 100 Chief Country Officers. Before that, he ran communications, philanthropy, government relations, branding, and human resources for Citigroup. He served as Chief of Staff at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in the Clinton Administration and in New York’s City Hall in the Dinkins and Koch Administrations. He began his career in investment banking. From 2014 until January 2021, Michael served as the Chairman of the New York City Economic Development Corporation, which encourages economic growth throughout New York City’s five boroughs and facilitates investments that build capacity, generate prosperity, and catalyze the economic vibrancy of city life as a whole. Michael has graduate and undergraduate degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa.

Managing Director, Center for Financial Inclusion
Nataša serves as the Managing Director for the Center for Financial Inclusion (CFI). She previously worked at the Miller Center for Social Entrepreneurship, housed at Santa Clara University, where she served as lead for the Center’s social enterprise ecosystem product offerings and supported organizational alignment, strategic planning, business development, and key stakeholder engagement. Nataša has worked with the World Bank and IFC on financial inclusion, digital finance, and consumer protection, and has served as the Vice President of The Boulder Institute of Microfinance. Nataša has a graduate degree in European Integration Studies from the University of Bologna and University of Sarajevo in partnership with the London School of Economics and an undergraduate degree in International Relations from William and Mary.