David del Ser

David del Ser

Chairman and Chief Innovation Officer

David is Chairman and Chief Innovation Officer at BFA Global. He brings high tech skills in growing areas of BFA Global to expand the company vision. He founded our Catalyst Fund accelerator and lately has been exploring how fintech can support climate action. In particular, he has led BFA Global's contribution to the Digital Finance for Climate Resilience nascent ecosystem. David has also started TECA, a platform that will launch 100 startups exploring fintech innovations that can foster climate resilience.

Prior to BFA, David was founder and is now chairman at Frogtek, a social venture providing app-based technology to enable small retailers in developing countries with better business tools. He is a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader, an Echoing Green Fellow, and holds a dual Masters of Telecommunications from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid and Télécom ParisTech and an MBA from Columbia Business School

Publications by this author

When the best available human is an AI?
Artificial Intelligence |

When the best available human is an AI?

Developing country economies are characterized by shortages of skills that seem to be good for AI to fill: from...

By Amolo Ng'weno
Climate innovation for impact: The role of generative AI in serving vulnerable populations
Climate Action |

Climate innovation for impact: The role of generative AI in serving vulnerable populations

Generative AI is a brand new kind of software innovation that works amazingly well for a range of complex...

By David del Ser
Learning From Our Past: Successful Ecosystem Evolutions Follow a Common Path
Climate Action |

Learning From Our Past: Successful Ecosystem Evolutions Follow a Common Path

In early 2021, BFA Global, CGAP, UNCDF’s Better than Cash Alliance, PayPal, the UN’s Race to Resilience, and the...

By Bethany Kanten
¿Las Neo-Cooperativas como los próximos disruptores del sector financiero? Un experimento conceptual
Financial Health |

¿Las Neo-Cooperativas como los próximos disruptores del sector financiero? Un experimento conceptual

In English Durante la pandemia de COVID-19, las cooperativas financieras mexicanas han continuado prestando sus servicios a casi 8...

By Gabriela Zapata Alvarez
NeoCo-ops as the next disruptors in the financial sector? A thought experiment
Financial Health |

NeoCo-ops as the next disruptors in the financial sector? A thought experiment

En Espanõl Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Mexican financial cooperatives have continued to serve their nearly 8 million members primarily...

By Gabriela Zapata Alvarez
The market gap for climate change solutions in Africa
Climate Action |

The market gap for climate change solutions in Africa

The COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the vulnerabilities of our health, financial, and economic systems. Scientists are warning that, at...

By Bethany Kanten
¿Cómo está afectando el Covid-19 la salud financiera de las microempresas mexicanas?
Financial Health |

¿Cómo está afectando el Covid-19 la salud financiera de las microempresas mexicanas?

Todas las opiniones aquí expresadas son exclusivas de BFA Global, por lo que MetLife no es responsable de la...

By David del Ser
Webinar y presentación: FinnSalud ante el COVID-19: Hallazgos e iniciativas para enfrentar la crisis
Financial Health |

Webinar y presentación: FinnSalud ante el COVID-19: Hallazgos e iniciativas para enfrentar la crisis

FinnSalud ante el COVID-19: Hallazgos e iniciativas para enfrentar la crisis Presentación virtual para diversas agencias ejecutoras y académicos...

By Jorge Hernandez
FinnSalud y el COVID-19: Cambio a modo emergencia
Financial Health |

FinnSalud y el COVID-19: Cambio a modo emergencia

FinnSalud es uno de los proyectos más importantes de BFA Global, con financiamiento de MetLife Foundation y patrocinio fiscal...

By David del Ser
FinnSalud and COVID-19: Shifting to emergency mode
Financial Health |

FinnSalud and COVID-19: Shifting to emergency mode

FinnSalud is one of BFA Global’s largest projects, supported by MetLife Foundation and fiscally sponsored by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors....

By David del Ser
¿Cómo está afectando el COVID-19 a la salud financiera de los mexicanos?
Financial Health |

¿Cómo está afectando el COVID-19 a la salud financiera de los mexicanos?

  Ahora que México cuenta con 993 casos confirmados de coronavirus y ha entrado en una Fase 2  con...

By David del Ser
FinnSalud Introductory Presentation (Spanish)
Financial Health |

FinnSalud Introductory Presentation (Spanish)

Lanzamiento de la 2a etapa del proyecto FinnSalud Conjuntamente con funcionarios de la MetLife Foundation y Fundación MetLife México,...

By David del Ser
Don’t be THAT CEO
Inclusive Fintech |

Don’t be THAT CEO

Management styles that hold you and your team back from product-market fit When it comes to venture-building, we can...

By David del Ser
Three Powerful Tools for Fintech Practitioners
Artificial Intelligence |

Three Powerful Tools for Fintech Practitioners

 Since we launched the Catalyst Fund in 2015, we have helped 15 fintech entrepreneurs deploy novel approaches to bring products...

By David del Ser
Sparking Growth in Corner Shops
Livelihoods and Microenterprise |

Sparking Growth in Corner Shops

Finbots for Shopkeepers Series #4 In this series I have described how smartphone sensors can generate raw data and...

By David del Ser
Tuning Into Shops with Sensors
Artificial Intelligence |

Tuning Into Shops with Sensors

Finbots for Shopkeepers Series #2     What is the one thing small shopkeepers and professional hackers have in...

By David del Ser
Going from Data to Information
Artificial Intelligence |

Going from Data to Information

Source: Flickr       With a single smartphone, small business owners can go from completely opaque information to...

By David del Ser
Growing with Insights
Livelihoods and Microenterprise |

Growing with Insights

Finbots for Shopkeepers Series #4   In this series I have described how smartphone sensors can generate raw data...

By David del Ser
SOCAP17 Conversations: The State of the Inclusive Fintech Field
Artificial Intelligence |

SOCAP17 Conversations: The State of the Inclusive Fintech Field

The Inclusive Fintech Track at SOCAP17 We are excited to announce that Catalyst Fund and JPMorgan Chase & Co....

By David del Ser
The Intelligent Bank of the Future
Artificial Intelligence |

The Intelligent Bank of the Future

Here’s a thought experiment: what if you had to design from scratch a new bank targeting low-income clients? This...

By David del Ser
Three Ways Social Entrepreneurs Can Increase Their Fundraising Luck at SOCAP
Inclusive Fintech |

Three Ways Social Entrepreneurs Can Increase Their Fundraising Luck at SOCAP

Catalyst Fund’s “How to SOCAP” for Entrepreneurs #1 Luck is what happens when Preparation meets Opportunity — Seneca As...

By David del Ser
How Does the Inclusive Fintech Landscape Compare to Mainstream Fintech?
Inclusive Fintech |

How Does the Inclusive Fintech Landscape Compare to Mainstream Fintech?

In the last few years the fintech sector in developed markets has gone through a phenomenal boom. Fintech is...

By David del Ser