‘Mobile Money’ Helps Haiti Quake Victims a Year After the Disaster

Few Haitians have access to a bank, but the majority of them have access to a mobile phone, which is why 2 of Haiti’s biggest cell phone companies are giving “mobile money” a try in an effort to help cash-strapped quake victims.

Donated funds are transferred to users’ cell phones and can then be used as “a debit card, but with text messaging,” says AP’s John Mone. So, for example, a user can pay a local shop keeper by simply transferring money into his or her account with the cell phone company via a text message.