TED Talks Daily Can AI uplift entrepreneurs that traditional banks reject? | Mercedes Bidart
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Nov 29, 2025 
Mercedes Bidart, an impact entrepreneur focused on financial inclusion, discusses how AI is revolutionizing access to credit for informal entrepreneurs in Latin America. She elaborates on how community trust serves as currency, and the challenges faced by those without formal credit history. By utilizing invisible data from smartphones, she reveals how trust can be measured for lenders. Mercedes showcases innovative AI models that analyze telecom and social media signals to deliver personalized loan terms, ultimately empowering underserved entrepreneurs.
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Trust As Local Currency
- Mercedes Bidart grew up around a family cortine and carpet shop and saw how community trust kept the business alive.
- She later observed the same trust-based local economies in Colombian informal settlements where neighbors would extend credit based on reputation.
Maria’s Struggle For Working Capital
- Mercedes tells Maria's story: a Venezuelan migrant artisan who needs materials before customers pay and lacks bank access.
- With no bank history Maria's only option was predatory lenders that charge extreme rates and use violence.
Invisible Data Hides Real Signals
- Informal businesses generate lots of signals, but they're not in the formats banks understand.
- Images and local marketplace content contain economic cues that reveal business activity and potential.