Banking in emerging markets has long struggled to reach the mass population due to limited financial literacy, inadequate banking infrastructure, and high service costs. According to the World Bank’s Financial Inclusion Project, 27% of adults remain unbanked. 50% are underbanked, with limited access to credit and formal products, while 44% still rely on cash for at least one utility payment each month.
Despite digital progress, serving the mass market remains a daunting challenge for modern banking. Multiple, deep-rooted structural barriers continue to widen the gap between financial institutions and underserved populations.
This article explores how agents and digital wallets are redefining financial access for underserved communities.
But before that, let’s examine the existing barriers to design sustainable, scalable, and inclusive solutions.
Barriers to serving the mass market
The mass market offers vast growth potential, yet several challenges hinder financial inclusion. High operational and security costs make it unfeasible for banks to sustain profitable branches in rural and low-income areas, forcing people to depend on informal, often insecure financial channels. Limited financial literacy and mistrust of formal institutions further restrict adoption, as users often struggle with complex processes and hidden fees. Additionally, heavy reliance on cash and the dominance of informal economies keep millions outside the digital financial ecosystem, limiting their access to credit, insurance, and structured savings. These barriers have paved the way for agent networks and digital wallets as innovative, scalable models. They extend banking access to underserved communities and bridge the gap between traditional finance and digital inclusion.
Agents: Bridging the last-mile gap
Agent networks consist of local businesses like shopkeepers, kiosks, small entrepreneurs, trained to deliver essential banking services on behalf of financial institutions. They provide a trusted, human interface in regions where banks cannot justify physical presence. Their key roles include cash-in / cash-out services, account registration and verification, payments and transfers, as well as microloans and savings. Agents are serve as the first touchpoint for financial inclusion, building trust while enabling scale.
By decentralizing service delivery, agent networks lower operating costs for banks and maintain local relevance and trust. Their last-mile presence transforms financial inclusion from a distant goal into a tangible reality. This lays the groundwork for deeper engagement through digital channels like mobile wallets and SuperApps.
Digital wallets: Extending the reach
Digital wallets put an entire financial ecosystem in the user’s hands. They allow users to securely store funds, send/receive money, pay bills, purchase airtime, and more. They enable seamless peer-to-peer transfers across regions, faster onboarding with minimal documentation compared to traditional bank accounts, and integration with government and corporate disbursements such as salaries, subsidies, and welfare. By integrating users into formal financial flows, wallets accelerate inclusion and reduce dependence on cash.
For low-income or remote users, digital wallets represent financial identity and empowerment. They offer a safe alternative to cash and help customers build transaction histories that can later unlock access to credit, insurance, or savings products. As mobile penetration deepens, wallets boost digital economies and foster entrepreneurship.
By enabling low-cost service delivery at scale, digital wallets strengthen customer engagement and pose a great advantage to financial institutions and telecom partners. Moreover, they generate valuable data insights to design hyper-personalized financial products. Their continuous evolution facilitates integration with agent networks, merchant ecosystems, and government services. It will be key to building holistic, sustainable financial systems.
Agents + wallets: A symbiotic model
Agents and digital wallets perfectly complement each other. For instance, M-Pesa in Kenya demonstrated how combining a vast agent network with mobile wallets can bring millions into the financial system. Agents built local trust and handled liquidity; wallets delivered convenience and scalability. This symbiosis shows that the future of inclusion lies in blended models, where human networks and digital platforms amplify each other.
Agents reassure first-time users and help them navigate digital wallets confidently. They also handle cash-in and cash-out transactions, bridging the gap between informal cash economies and digital ecosystems. Wallets let institutions expand rapidly without the cost of new physical branches. Agents educate users on digital tools, savings habits, and responsible money management, strengthening financial literacy. Combining agents and wallets helps financial institutions deliver inclusive, accessible, and scalable services. It drives deeper engagement and broader adoption in underserved regions.
The next wave: SuperApps and hybrid wallets
The financial services landscape is undergoing a fundamental shift with the rise of SuperApps and hybrid wallets. It is reshaping how consumers interact with money, commerce, and services. What began as standalone digital wallets has evolved into all-in-one ecosystems that integrate banking, payments, e-commerce, transportation, insurance, entertainment, and even social interactions. This convergence is redefining convenience and financial access, especially in emerging markets where mobile-first adoption is driving rapid transformation.
At the heart of this evolution are hybrid wallets—platforms that bridge traditional fiat systems with digital currencies, enabling users to transact seamlessly across both. They empower consumers to store, send, and spend multiple currencies within a single interface, combining the stability of conventional banking with the innovation of blockchain-enabled assets.
Consequently, intense competition has emerged among banks, fintechs, and telecom operators. Traditional banks, once gatekeepers of financial trust, now face the challenge of staying relevant as fintechs and telcos leverage their digital reach and customer data to launch innovative, low-cost financial solutions. Fintechs bring agility and user-first design, while telcos hold the advantage of extensive customer bases and last-mile connectivity. The result is a blurring of industry boundaries, where collaboration becomes as critical as competition. Many institutions are now forming strategic alliances wherein banks provide regulatory expertise and trust, while telcos and fintechs contribute digital platforms and scalability.
Regulators, meanwhile, are under pressure to ensure security, interoperability, and consumer protection in these fast-evolving ecosystems. The key lies in promoting innovation without compromising safety or inclusion.
SuperApps act as a financial hub for users and a business accelerator for service providers. They eliminate the friction of switching between multiple applications by embedding payments, savings, and commerce into a single app experience. In markets such as Myanmar, Indonesia, and India, where mobile penetration outpaces traditional banking access, this model has become a catalyst for financial inclusion and digital empowerment.
As MobiFin continues to power SuperApp innovation across emerging markets, it is helping partners move beyond traditional wallet experiences to build connected, intelligent, and inclusive financial ecosystems. The future of digital finance is about creating unified, value-driven digital experiences that evolve with every user’s need.
Conclusion
Agents and digital wallets are not interim fixes but the building blocks of a new financial architecture for the mass market. Their strength lies in combining human trust with digital convenience, expanding reach, deepening inclusion, and reshaping money flows.
The next decade will test how effectively banks, fintechs, and regulators can harness these models to deliver sustainable, equitable financial access at scale and build a truly digital-first economy across emerging markets.
Discover how MobiFin is powering the next generation of digital financial solutions. Partner with us to leverage scalable, secure, and innovative platforms that bring banking, payments, and lifestyle services to every corner of emerging markets.
