Increased penetration of telecom services is widely recognized as an enabler of economic growth. In the short span of a Decade, mobile penetration has grown from just over 16% of The world’s population to close to 84% today
M-commerce is predicted to reach US$118 billion in 2015. 1 in 8 mobile subscribers will use m-ticketing in 2015 for airline, rail and bus travel, festivals, cinemas and sports events.
Micro Insurance size of the potential market is estimated to be between 1.5 and 3 billion policies, with significant demand for a range of products, including health, life, agricultural and property insurance. Over 135 million people are currently covered with micro insurance which around 5 % of the potential market. Annual growth rates are currently over 10%.
Paying by mobile i.e. m-payments was worth US$240 billion in 2011 and could be over US$1 trillion by 2015
Purchasing digital goods is the largest segment ahead of physical goods, near-field communications (NFC), m-banking and money transfer.
Whilst enabling access to affordable communications is a critical step in empowering people to improve their economic wellbeing, a key stage in bridging the economic divide is ensuring access to financial services. With only 1.8 billion bank accounts in a world of 7 billion people, there is a major opportunity to exploit the over 6 billion mobile connections as a means to deliver formal and secure financial services