Access to financial services and the financial inclusion agenda around the world: a cross-country analysis with a new data set

Oya Ardic, Maximilien Heimann and Nataliya Mylenko

No 5537, Policy Research Working Paper Series from The World Bank

Abstract: Recent empirical evidence highlights that access to basic financial services can make a substantial positive difference in improving poor people's lives. Accordingly, financial sector reforms that promote financial inclusion are increasingly at the core of policymakers’ agendas. The Consultative Group to Assist the Poor and the World Bank Group, in response, launched the Financial Access project, including a cross-country database on financial inclusion topics and an annual report to inform the policy debate. Using this database, this paper (i) counts the number of unbanked adults around the world at 56 percent, (ii) analyzes the state of access to deposit and loan services as well as the extent of retail networks, and (iii) discusses the state of financial inclusion mandates around the world.

Keywords: Access to Finance; Financial Literacy; Banks&Banking Reform; Debt Markets; Emerging Markets (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2011-01-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ban and nep-mfd
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (55)

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