POSIBLE Coop FinTech

The south-southeast zone in Mexico is historically marginalized, the cooperativa savinf and credit sector faces challenges to promote financial inclusion and economic development. According to INEGI, in 2020, only 31.7% of the population of the state of Chiapas had a bank account, in the case of Oaxaca it was 35.1% and in Tabasco 43.8%. In addition, credit unions in the region face high levels of informality, lack of training, and limited access to financial technology. These factors limit the ability of individuals and MSMEs to take risks and generate wealth, making economic development slow and uneven in the region.  

By the end of 2021, according to Renacoop data, in the south-southeast region of Mexico there were a total of 654 registered credit unions. This represents a wide opportunity to encourage them to take their financial institutions to the next level through specialized training. 

"Digital means of payment have a good adoption in savings banks, which serve the rural population. To migrate to this technology, they work on communication campaigns, where they explain how these digital payment methods benefit their users," said Jaime Márquez, director of business development and new projects of the fintech Sistema de Transferencia y Pagos (STP). According to research conducted by them, the incorporation of technology to the services of these entities has a high penetration in users, since 72% of customers adopt digital payment methods, to carry out operations. 

In Mexico, a study by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and Finnovista found that 15% of fintech companies registered in 2019 identified themselves as financial cooperatives. This percentage is slightly higher than the average for Latin America and the Caribbean, suggesting that financial cooperatives in Mexico are adopting fintech technologies at a similar or even higher rate than in other countries in the region. 

It is important to note that financial cooperatives in Mexico have a long tradition and have played an important role in the financial inclusion of the most vulnerable population, especially in rural and low-income areas. The adoption of fintech technologies by these cooperatives can further enhance their ability to provide financial services to their members and contribute to financial inclusion in the country. 

POSIBLE has worked for 4 years with production cooperatives in the south-southeast region, graduating more than 140 cooperatives from the program, through this approach we have recognized the need for these business units to have a greater and better local financial offer, requiring solutions oriented to access, use and quality. 

Capacity building program for credit and savings associations, where we seek to explore with them the possibility of joining the FinTech movement by teaching them through workshops, conferences, and specialized mentoring:  

-Leadership and governance,    

-Finance and financing,    

-Sales and marketing,    

-Implementation of technology to provide financial services.   

-Digital literacy.   

Additionally, we will implement a financial education caravan to encourage community participation in cooperative financing societies in the south-southeast region, to create a financial culture and bring services closer to communities that require it.   

The acceleration program is aimed at credit and savings cooperatives currently operating within the south-southeast region of Mexico. According to a study by the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV), in general, credit cooperative in Mexico mainly serve low-income individuals and MSMEs that do not have access to traditional financial services, including those living in rural and marginalized areas.

Currently this type of cooperative society lacks professionalization, as there is no wide range of training and adequate training in financial management, administration, and financial regulation, which can negatively impact the lack of transparency in financial management, lack of adequate controls, wrong decision making, and non-compliance with financial regulations. 

The program accelerates capacity building, through specialized training and mentoring that drives cooperatives to consolidate and visualize the possibility of joining the FinTech movement.

The financial education caravan is aimed at the rural population of the south-southeast region of Mexico, made up mainly of low-income people excluded from the formal financial sector, so it is necessary to link them to the cooperative financial sector.  

Disinformation with this sector of the population negatively influences the perception of credit unions, which can result in the loss of confidence and the decrease in the participation of new members affecting the development of the sector.  

The  financial education that POSIBLE Coop FinTech seeks to implement from the caravans will develop basic digital financial skills in terms of savings and investment, as well as long-term financial planning positioning financial cooperatives with the public as a financing option for the vulnerable population.

POSIBLE Coop is an acceleration program that has 4 years of experience serving the vulnerable sector of the south-southeast region of Mexico through its cooperatives, which has developed a high sensitivity index in the implementation team with the needs of the inhabitants.  

The experience in the field through direct work with the communities and their members allows us to know first-hand their main needs, expanding the possibility of designing a solution according to them, considering the active participation of the beneficiaries themselves for constant improvement, in addition to the participation of local governments, other foundations and civil society actors working within the same region. Weaving with this a network of support and meaningful learning for the development of the intervention. 

One of the great challenges for the cooperative sector is access to financing, which has caused exclusion, the work that has been done through POSiBLE Coop has benefited production cooperatives, which in the design of their future plans do not find a viable way to access financial services,  Therefore, the design of this project allows us to advance one step in terms of access, use and quality of these services. 

POSIBLE Coop FinTech is an opportunity for Fundación Televisa to aid the financial sector, expanding cooperation networks in favor of the sector. Making available to these groups a wide network of allies and growth opportunities for their businesses. 

Today, we have a methodology specifically designed for POSIBLE Coop Fintech, as well as the capacity to develop the necessary materials and outreach to achieve our stated objectives. However, to date, we have not yet provided benefits to savings and credit cooperatives through this program.

POSIBLE Coop operates since 2019 where more than 140 producer cooperatives have graduated, indirectly benefiting more than 10,000 cooperative members. From the experience of these years, POSIBLE Coop Fintech is designed that seeks to implement for the first time in collaboration with Solve benefiting savings and credit cooperatives. 

POSIBLE Coop has been developed thanks to a network of strategical allies of which we seek that Solve and the Solvers are part, to design a global solution that positively impacts the development of the south-southeast region of Mexico.  

Considering that the solution presented is critical for the economic and social development of the region and to ensure that credit unions can fulfill their mission of providing accessible and equitable financial services to all their members, as well as incorporating new members under unfavorable conditions. 

This program innovates in the segment it serves, focused on the professionalization of credit cooperatives, which is a critical need in the region. Although these organizations are fundamental to detonate local development from the financial inclusion of rural and low-income communities, currently in Mexico they lack the training and resources necessary to manage their operations effectively. That said, POSIBLE Coop FinTech is based on exploring the incorporation of technology hand in hand with credit cooperatives to generate more viable and sustainable cooperative financial projects in the long term in the vulnerable population segment.

Secondly, the proposal considers training of local trainers, which will allow the program to be sustainable in the long term and adapted to the needs of the community. The lack of trained personnel within communities has been a barrier to the implementation of similar programs in the past. 

Objective 1: Improve the financial inclusion of rural and low-income communities. 

Objective 2: Increase the operational efficiency of credit cooperatives. 

The proposed objectives can be achieved through the implementation of POSIBLE Coop FinTech, underpinning the formation of cooperatives and the public to improve financial knowledge and skills effectively in the southeastern region of Mexico. 

The increase in the operational efficiency of credit cooperatives and the improvement in the quality and accessibility of financial services directly impacts the lives of people who are members of cooperatives, as well as the general population where they are located, since it gives them the opportunity to have access to affordable and quality financial services that can help improve their financial lives.

Ensuring greater financial inclusion of rural and low-income communities is an important measure to reduce poverty and foster economic development in these areas, 

The objectives described above will be measured from indicators.
Objective indicators 1:  

-Number of new credit cooperatives members in rural and low-income areas 

-Percentage of new members reporting increased understanding of financial services offered by credit cooperatives. 

-Percentage of new members reporting increased access to financial services after joining credit cooperatives.

Objective indicator 2:  

-Percentage of credit cooperatives with strategic plans in place. 

Additionally, an analysis and count of: 

• People trained from the financial education caravan.  

• People linked to a cooperative savings and credit institution.  

• Number of credit unions graduated from the acceleration process.  

• Growth rate in the mastery of the topics addressed during the trainings. 

General objective: To strengthen the financial education of cooperative members and the public in the rural sector in situations of financial exclusion public and members of savings and credit cooperatives in the southeastern region of Mexico to improve financial inclusion and reduce poverty. 

Specific objectives: 

• Explore together with credit cooperatives the possibility of becoming service providers through digitalization and getting involved in the FinTech movement. 

• Improve the operational efficiency of credit cooperatives to provide quality and accessible financial services. 

• Pass on the methodology to local instructors so they can effectively impart financial knowledge and skills to credit union members over the long term. 

• Promote financial inclusion in rural and low-income communities through training with the financial education caravan.  

The theory of change shows that, if the capacities of credit cooperatives and their members in the southeastern region of Mexico are strengthened, presenting them with the possibility of transforming into FinTech will improve the operational effectiveness of cooperatives and promote financial inclusion in rural and low-income communities, enhancing financial inclusion and poverty reduction in the region. 

Improving the operational effectiveness of cooperatives will enable the provision of quality and accessible financial services to members and communities, which can promote financial inclusion and economic growth. 

Likewise, generalized financial education to the population of the south-southeast region will break down barriers that keep them distanced from banking services, opening opportunities for growth and development for all in an equal manner.  

Ultimately, financial inclusion is a vehicle to reduce poverty and improve people's quality of life by generating high levels of well-being in the south-southeast region of Mexico. 

The core technology to implement this solution is not a technology platform itself, but rather the implementation of technology in online training, through online learning tools and platforms. These technological resources will allow the delivery of courses and training in hybrid format through various formats such as videos, interactive presentations, educational games, and quizzes, among others. In addition, videoconferencing and online communication technologies could be used to deliver live sessions and establish effective communication channels with participants. 

POSIBLE Coop FinTech will seek to bring credit cooperatives technological tools that allow them to make the leap to financial services in a more efficient, agile, and reliable way for users. 

Within Fundación Televisa, some strategies are implemented to guarantee diversity, equity, and inclusion, for example:

• Education and awareness: Training sessions on these topics and a constant and sensitive approach to the inclusion of all types of profiles.  

• Inclusion campaigns: Internal and external promotion of the relevance of inclusion. 

• Selection processes: incorporation of new members for the team, we consider diversity and inclusion. 

Value proposition: To improve the financial inclusion of rural populations in southeastern Mexico, through an acceleration program aimed at capacity building of credit cooperatives, which explores the use of technology to scale their operations for the benefit of financially excluded people, adapted to the needs of the rural population and serving the needs of global markets. Additionally, seek financial education at the regional level to encourage the general population to participate in the services offered by this type of entities.  

The business model focuses on the needs of rural populations and credit cooperatives and addresses the specific challenges they face in terms of financial inclusion and professionalization. Highlighting the benefits for cooperatives, their members, and communities where they develop including increasing their sustainability and management capacity, which in turn will allow them to offer quality financial services to rural populations and improve their social impact.

Fundación Televisa seeks to implement its programs through a co-investment scheme, where it brings together different actors; Governments, private initiative, associations, and other foundations, which make contributions plus their own contributions, which guarantees the financial sustainability of the programs in the short and long term. 

POSIBLE Coop is derived from the POSIBLE program of Fundación Televisa, which has operated from 2013 to date through the co-investment scheme, adding the resources granted by: 

-Nacional Monte de Piedad. 

-Citibanamex. 

-Citiexpress.  

- Fundación Televisa