Purpose – This paper illustrates that natural disasters can significantly threaten financial institutions serving the poor. The authors test the case of a microfinance institution (MFI) in Northern Peru, where severe El Niño events create catastrophic flooding. Design/methodology/approach –...

The El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a climate event associated with warming sea surface temperatures in the Pacific Ocean. In years of extreme El Niño events, areas in northern Peru experience catastrophic flooding. As of 2010, it is possible for stakeholders in northern Peru to...

We examine risk preferences using the flood insurance decisions of over 100,000 households. In each contract, households make a small stakes decision, the deductible, and a large stakes one, the coverage limit. Over 94 percent of household choose one of the two lowest deductibles out of six...

This paper considers lender-level index insurance as a means of expanding access to credit in disaster-prone communities. In this approach, the lender transfers the disaster risk of loans in its portfolio by contracting on an observable measure of the catastrophe. I develop and calibrate a...

We examine small business financing outcomes approximately one year after Hurricane Harvey. Our data include the credit reports of 8,219 businesses and a detailed survey of 273 businesses in the affected area. We find that Harvey-related flooding increased credit delinquencies, especially...

Negative shocks to housing, most households’ largest consumption good, are expected to create strong credit demand to smooth these shocks over time. We estimate and trace a credit demand curve for households who recently experienced a negative shock to their housing stock. We use...