Solutions to Financial Exclusion in Rural and Depopulated Areas: Evidence Based in Castilla y León (Spain)

Access to banking and financial services is defined by various international organizations as essential to ensure the development of countries and regions. However, this access is not always guaranteed, even in developed countries. Our study focuses on analyzing the current situation of several rural and depopulated areas of Castilla y León (Spain) in terms of access to banking services and cash. For this purpose, an initial spatial analysis has been carried out to compute the access to these services measured in kilometers needed to travel to access them. Subsequently, we included, as a possible solution, the access to these financial services through their implementation (as a cash back point) in the extensive Spanish network of pharmacies. The results obtained in the spatial analysis show that the introduction of the network of pharmacies as a point of access to cash means a significant reduction in the distance to travel in municipalities in rural and unpopulated areas in order to access cash. In the case of the province of Avila the distance would be reduced by 55%, in the province of Segovia the distance would be reduced by 38.5%, in the province of Soria the distance would be reduced by 20%, in the province of Palencia the distance would be reduced by 22%; and finally in the province of Zamora the distance would be reduced by 33%.

Financial Inclusion through Financial Literacy

Financial literacy is a means to tackle the problem of financial exclusion. It is a combination of awareness, skills, knowledge, attitude and behaviors necessary to make sound financial decisions and achieve financial well being. Objective of this study is to analyze current policy, practices and evidences on financial literacy. The study has been carried out on the basis of review of literature and secondary data collected from a range of sources. It is found that the government of India, RBI and other regulatory bodies are running financial literacy campaigns through diverse mediums. Financial literacy centers (FLCs) are contributing for enhancement of financial literacy. However, they need to be strengthened by enhancing resources. Inclusion of financial education in school and college curriculum has also been recommended. Scope of the study is limited to Ghaziabad district of Uttar Pradesh in India. The study might be valuable for policymakers in enhancing financial inclusion.

Understanding FinTech and Decentralized Finance (DeFi) for Financial Inclusion

For a very long period of time, financial inclusion researchers have been addressing the barriers that prevent unprivileged people from accessing and using financial services. Financial exclusion is an underlying social problem that dates from the creation of the first financial system. Without the access to the banking and financial infrastructures, the unbanked are perpetuating a vicious cycle of poverty. Blockchain is leading this transformation of allowing unbanked and underbanked people to have access and interact with the finance industry. The promise of a digital economy is starting to take shape, as financial technology (FinTech) companies are evolving the concept of democratization of access. Decentralized finance (DeFi) is expanding the possibilities of financial technology by creating an ecosystem based on transparency, accessibility, and efficiency. We are witnessing a paradigm shift for most of the financial services which are remodeling the accessibility and usability of these services, addressing the excluded and underserved population.

Microfinance Impact on Microbusiness Development in Africa

This chapter applies the control group experiment to study whether microfinance improved microbusiness growth in Ghana. According to this approach, statistically significant difference in the outcome between treatment and control groups is an indication of impact of the microcredit on microbusiness development. Thus, this chapter compares the mean monthly sales, number of employees, business assets, and capital stock of microbusinesses that received microfinance (the treatment group) and the mean monthly sales, number of employees, business assets, and capital stock of microbusinesses that did not receive microfinance (the non-treatment group) in seven municipalities identified by various non-governmental organisations as areas of financial exclusion in the Northern Region of Ghana using survey data. Results indicate that microfinance impacted positively on microbusiness development. These findings have policy implications for the government of Ghana and agencies that are interested in using microfinance as a catalyst for economic growth in deprived communities in other countries.

Uwarunkowania wykluczenia emerytalnego z dodatkowej części systemu emerytalnego w Polsce

The study addresses the issues of exclusion from the supplementary part of the Polish pension system. The main goals of the research are: 1) characterising retirement exclusion as a specific type of financial exclusion, and 2) identifying and assessing key determinants of retirement exclusion in the supplementary part of the Polish pension system. The article is epistemological and classifying in nature. In the review part, the research methods used are based on a critical analysis of the literature and a synthesis of its conclusions. The main part is based on a meta-analysis of the results of surveys regarding pension awareness and propensity to save, elements of the economic analysis of law, and analysis of existing data. The presented considerations lead to the formulation of arguments, that justify the thesis that the scale and extent of retirement exclusion in the supplementary part of the Polish pension system are a derivative of factors included in four meta-categories: 1. low pension awareness, 2. low saving potential, 3. low propensity to save, and 4. limited availability of pension products.

Microfinance as a Mechanism against Financial Exclusion in the European Rural Areas – an Inspiration for the Czech Republic

One of the factors influencing the emergence of disparities between rural and urban regions is the varying level of financial inclusion of the population. The system of microfinancing is becoming an important mechanism against poverty and social exclusion in Europe. However, there is available very limited legal, regulatory and historical information on the microfinance system in the Czech Republic. As a result, microfinance institutions are absent and small entrepreneurs tend to use expensive consumer credit products, thereby increasing the risk of over-indebtedness. The aim of this research is to examine the repayment performance of the European microfinance institutions with increased share of clients from rural areas. Based on an empirical statistical analysis of an unique European microfinance institutions´ database, we are presenting evidence that suggests that microfinance systems perform better in rural than in urban areas. This finding is strongly recommended for consideration in the development of policies to guide legal frameworks regarding microfinancing.

Optimal Financial Exclusion

We study efficient exclusion policies in a canonical credit model that features both exogenous and strategic default along the equilibrium path. Policies that maximize welfare in a stationary equilibrium implement exclusion for a finite and deterministic number of periods following default. Front-loading exclusion makes the mass of socially valuable transactions as high as it can be in steady state. Less intuitively, doing so also maximizes the average welfare of excluded agents in equilibrium conditional on the level of incentives provided by the threat of exclusion. We argue that these results are robust to a host of natural variations on our benchmark model. (JEL C73, D53, D86, G21, G32, G51)

Development Status, Causes of Risks, and Risk Supervision Suggestions on Internet Finance in China

As a useful supplement to China’s financial system, the development of internet finance has promoted the innovation of financial model and injected strong vitality into the financial market. Internet finance provides customers with more convenient and fast financial services, effectively alleviates financial exclusion, and reduces information asymmetry. It is of great significance to promote the marketization of interest rate and the development of inclusive finance in China. However, internet financial risk events occur frequently, posing a serious challenge. Therefore, this research analyzes the causes of internet financial risks, and provides suggestions on internet financial risk supervision, so as to promote a healthy development of the internet financial industry in China.

Unlocking the Potential of Fintechs for Financial Inclusion: A Delphi-Based Approach

The financial sector is experiencing an accelerated process of transformation shaped by fintechs, which opens an important window of opportunity to increase financial inclusion in emerging markets, such as Brazil, with high financial exclusion. Thus, this article investigates, through a Delphi approach involving fintech professionals, the potential of fintechs to enable financial inclusion in emerging markets, using Brazil as a proxy. The analysis carried out identified three domains related to fintechs that have the potential to impact financial inclusion: (i) fintechs can serve niches of people without a bank account in the traditional financial market, (ii) fintechs can reduce costs for clients through increased competition, and (iii) fintechs can offer financial services in remote locations, far from traditional financial institutions. Thus, with the objective of developing a public agenda of financial inclusion through fintechs, the article proposes four lines of public policies: (i) expansion and modernization of mobile and internet infrastructure, (ii) improvement of the population’s financial and digital education, (iii) implementation of a trustworthy environment for the fintech clients, and (iv) development and enforcement of an effective legal and regulatory framework for fintechs. These policies, if implemented, can benefit people excluded from the financial system around the world.

Effect Of Islamic Social Finance Exclusion On Sustainable Livelihood Assets Acquisition And Persistent Poverty In Zanzibar

The aim of this paper is to examine the relationship that exists between voluntary and non-non-voluntary Islamic social finance exclusion and sustainable livelihood assets (social capital, natural capital, physical capital, and human capital) among the household’s head in Zanzibar. The survey questionnaire was distributed to the head of household with sample size of 287 and data were collected and analysed based on both factor analysis and structural equation modeling using SPSS 23.0 and Amos 23.0 software. The results indicated that non-non-voluntary Islamic social finance exclusion factors impede financial inclusion of the poor in Zanzibar rather than voluntary Islamic social financial exclusion factors. This implies that non-voluntary Islamic social finance exclusion has great implication for the acquisition of the sustainable livelihood assets due to the combined effect of lack of awareness about Islamic social finance services on one hand and the cost associated to it on the other. This has great implications for the acquisition of the requisite livelihood assets needed to exit the persistent state of poverty raveling Zanzibar. This paper contributes to the government efforts through Waqf and Trust commission Zanzibar (WTCZ) to review these three Islamic social funds (Waqf, zakat and almsgiving) for the purpose of poverty alleviation in Zanzibar.