This report developed by the Global Acceptance team at Mastercard recognizes the important role for merchant acceptance of electronic payments in advancing Financial Inclusion.  Furthermore, it moves the conversation forward by uncovering insights into how to advance electronic payment acceptance at the base of the pyramid.
 
In the report, several critical barriers to the acceptance of electronic payments by Small and Micro Businesses (SMBs) are identified.  These include: Economic factors; Risk; Distribution challenges; and Friction.
 
The report then details effective ways to address the challenges of building the ecosystem for payment acceptance among SMBs at the Base of the Pyramid, stemming from these barriers:

• Make useful additions to product propositions to make electronic payment solutions attractive and relevant to SMBs;
• Design new business models to reduce costs and increase the viability of business models serving SMBs;
• Invest in market development initiatives through collaboration with the public and private sectors in order to overcome structural barriers to acceptance and to incent market participation and innovation.