We’re back from the 2010 Mobile World Congress, which this year enjoyed 49,000 visitors from 200 countries. Amid talk of smart phones vs. dumb pipes, my colleagues Mark Pickens and Stephen Rasmussen both had a chance to present the latest learning from our program. Mark talked about the significance of agents and Stephen presented the forces and uncertainties that will determine how little - or much - mobile banking will increase financial inclusion in the coming decade.

While we wonder what impact Vodafone’s announced US$15 mobile phone will have on unbanked, poor people (see a video demo here):

PayPal and Facebook are teaming up for a “virtual currency” - which makes one wonder if the fastest banking without branches might just happen through social media. As Reuters tells us:

Facebook allows users to send virtual gift items — such as cupcakes, airplanes and Teddy-bears that don’t exist in the real world — to friends using a virtual currency system, which is essentially fake money. Users currently pay for these items using a credit card but now will be able to use PayPal as well.  Privately held Facebook does not disclose how much revenue it draws from virtual goods, a fast-growing digital add-on that has emerged as much more than just a fad.

BGC Partners analyst Colin Gillis, who called the deal a “nice win” for PayPal, estimates that digital goods on Facebook could be as much as a $100 million business.

Further evidence of the focus on mobile phones for financial services comes from Finextra:

Card giant Visa has hired Bill Gajda, chief commercial officer at global wireless trade group GSMA, to head up its mobile operations.

And finally, next week Paris will become a focal point for innovation in development:

The Agence Française de Développement (AFD), The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the World Bank will co-host a Marketplace on Innovative Financial Solutions for Development to be held in Paris on March 4-5, 2010. The Marketplace seeks to garner and highlight fresh ideas on financial solutions for development. It is dedicated to innovative financial mechanisms for better mobilizing, channeling, and using funds.

A programming note: did you know you can receive the CGAP Technology Blog via email? It’s true. It’s free.

-Jim Rosenberg