How do you build a mobile payments network where banks barely function and cash is king?On this episode of The Core Report Weekend Edition, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj speaks with Nigel Pont, Senior Advisor for Humanitarian Affairs, HesabPay (Afghanistan’s leading mobile payments platform — now expanding into Syria) and the Algorand Foundation.From war zones to wallets, this episode dives into how HesabPay is helping people access money digitally — even without smartphones or bank accounts — and why trust, not technology, remains the biggest challenge.Timestamps:
(00:00) How Nigel Pont got involved with HesabPay
(02:40) How HesabPay fills a gap and how it works
(05:20) The trust deficit
(06:39) How the e-wallet works and integrates with the Afghanistan Banking system
(08:15) Understanding the blockchain aspect
(10:38) The challenges with blockchain
(13:03) limitations of the digital payment infrastructure
(15:00) A Model for setting up digital payments infrastructure
(17:27) Cross border transactions
(18:50) On-ramping fiat to crypto
(22:15) Digital payment infrastructures in advanced country users
(24:39) Adoption rates and need for inbound payments
(26:50) The fee rates
(28:01) Tech applicable for disaster response
(30:30) Working within regulation in Afghanistan and Syria
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