Mobile money to poor seen $5 billion market in 2012

Mobile money to poor seen $5 billion market in 2012

HELSINKI (Reuters) - The market of mobile financial services to poor people in emerging markets will surge from nothing to $5 billion in 2012, U.S.-based microfinance policy and research center CGAP said on Monday.

Mobile money is one of the hottest topics in the wireless world, but so far take-up of services has been mostly limited to a few emerging markets, as in developed countries the popularity of online banking has been a brake on mobile money.

"Theres a lot of excitement, but very little understanding what's going on as the number of implementations is still limited," said Mark Pickens, microfinance analyst at CGAP.

The market began in early 2007 with a launch of Safaricom's M-PESA in Kenya, which has attracted 6.5 million customers, or one in six Kenyans.

Operators in several emerging countries have followed, and by end-2009 CGAP expects more than 120 mobile money implementations in developing markets.
The new estimates are part of GCAP's joint study with industry group GSMA on estimating the size of mobile financial markets. The study is due to be published next week at the Mobile Money Summit in Barcelona.

Pickens said on top of the $5 billion, telecoms operators could save up to $2 billion from lower customer turnover, and the takeup of financial services would lift by $1.10 their average monthly revenue per user (ARPU).
In Africa only one in five people have bank accounts, mainly because of the prohibitive cost to the banks of operating branches in far-flung parts of a continent where many of the population of one billion live on a few dollars a day or less. Read Article... http://www.reuters.com/article/technologyNews/idUSTRE55E10T20090615

Arms dealers revel in Somali war business

Arms dealers revel in Somali war business

MOGADISHU (Reuters) - Sitting on a mat at home between taking orders for arms on his two mobile phones, Osman Bare gives thanks for the riches flowing from Somalia's war.
"I have only been in the weapon business five years, but I have erected three villas. I have also opened shops for my two wives," said the 40-year-old, one of about 400 Somali men operating in Mogadishu's main weapons market.

"Peace means bankruptcy for us."

Despite a U.N. arms embargo on Somalia, the Horn of Africa nation is awash with weaponry from all over the world that has fueled one of Africa's longest-running conflicts.
In the latest cycle of civil war, militant Islamists have been fighting the Somali government for the last two years and 18,000 civilians have been killed in the crossfire.
Weapons are captured, sold and recycled constantly between both sides, experts say. Many arms have come from Ethiopian soldiers who intervened in Somalia between 2006 and early 2009.
African Union peacekeepers have been accused of trafficking arms, and regional bodies say Eritrea -- among others -- is funneling weapons toward the rebels.
Weapons are also said to pour across the porous borders of Kenya, Djibouti and Ethiopia, arriving by plane and through seas infested by pirates who are themselves armed to the teeth.
The Mogadishu arms market is just one part of an illicit global arms bazaar. Read Article...
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE5582RR20090609

FACTBOX: Prices of arms in Mogadishu market

(Reuters) - In Mogadishu, prices of guns and ammunition have fallen in recent months due to plentiful supplies from Eritrea and Uganda and the weapons Ethiopian troops left behind when they withdrew, arms dealers say.

Here is a price list for some popular weapons:

Mortars

120 mm - $700 ($55 per mortar bomb)

82 mm - $300 ($25 per bomb)

60 mm - $200 ($18 per bomb)

Anti-aircraft guns (truck mounted)

23 mm - $20,000 ($2.50 per round)
37 mm version also available, but there is currently no ammunition in stock. Other, smaller variants are available for between $4,000 and $5,000, with their rounds quoted at $1 each.
Anti-tank weapons cost $5,000, while a rocket-propelled grenade launcher is quoted at $200, plus $150 per grenade.

Pistols
A new pistol from Yemen is $650, a second-hand one from Russia is $400 and a new American pistol is $700.
A new Belgian pistol is $500 and a new Russian one is $1,000. Rounds cost between $1.50 and $3 each.

Rifles
An Indian-made AK-47 costs $140. Better quality versions from North Korea cost $600 and the Russian original costs $400.
Hand-grenades go for $25 each, landmines $100.