The Development of National Payment Systems

Author: Ajmal Ahmady

Abstract

The development of payment systems is critical to improve financial inclusion. This paper reviews the development of payment systems across four developing countries: Afghanistan, Kenya, Brazil, and India. There are two primary conclusions that we can draw from this research: (1) the development of payment systems is country-specific and dependent on a number of factors, and (2) there is no technology constraint to achieving 100% financial inclusion in developing economies. I conclude by providing a framework to understand the factors that drive development of payment systems and another framework to significantly increase financial inclusion.