Mehmet Kerse

Senior Financial Sector Specialist

Mehmet Kerse works with CGAP’s policy team on the regulation and supervision of digital finance and digital payments. His recent work focuses on fintech, digital currencies, tokenization, digital banking, embedded finance, and artificial intelligence in financial services. With over 15 years of experience in financial regulation and supervision, financial inclusion, and consumer protection, Mehmet has collaborated with numerous central banks and financial regulators, primarily in Sub-Saharan Africa, Southeast Asia, Europe and Arab countries. He began his career as a bank supervisor in the Banking Regulation and Supervision Authority of Turkey and later worked on anti-money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) projects for the World Bank. He is a Certified Fraud Examiner. 

He also works with other international organizations such as the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF). Mehmet holds a Master’s degree in Public Administration from Harvard University and a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from Turkey's Bilkent University.

By Mehmet Kerse

Blog

Is Financial Inclusion a Reason to Push Central Bank Digital Currencies?

Advocates of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC) often cite financial inclusion as a reason to introduce them. CGAP examines their three main arguments: improved access to digital financial services, enhanced efficiency of payments and lower cost.
Blog

Is Mexico’s “Fintech Law” Leading a New Trend in Fintech Regulation?

Some regulators are looking to Mexico's so-called "fintech law" as an example of how to respond to the full range of fintech innovations in a single law. But this isn't what the Mexican law does, and there are good reasons for this.
Blog

Some Countries Have Digital Bank Licenses, Others Have Digital Banks

Some regulators are creating custom banking licenses for digital banks. Others are licensing digital banks with existing licenses. What's the better way to encourage digital banking?
Research

The Use of Agents by Digital Financial Services Providers

Agents play a crucial role in lowering the cost of delivery to reach the unbanked and underbanked population. An increasing number of countries, especially emerging markets and developing economies, allow a diverse array of banks and nonbank institutions to distribute digital financial services through agents.
Research

Deposit Insurance Treatment of E-Money: An Analysis of Policy Choices

The expansion of digital financial accounts among poor customers has raised the question of whether e-money should be covered by deposit insurance and if so, how. This Technical Note examines the options while arguing that deposit insurance should not be the first line of defense in many emerging markets.