We explore the effects of mandatory third-party review of mortgage contracts on the terms, availability, and performance of mortgage credit. Our study is based on a legislative pilot carried out by the State of Illinois in a selected set of zip codes in 2006. Mortgage applicants with low FICO...

Financial inclusion is the broad based delivery of banking and other financial services at affordable cost to the poorest sections of the society. In India, financial inclusion emphasizes to include maximum number of people under formal financial systems. The present study investigates the drive...

This is a collection of essays written for the Financial Express, an Indian financial daily. The common theme of these essays, which cover a period of almost four years, from June 2010 to March 2014, is the India’s struggles with economic policy reform. The essays are organized into...

The economic and financial structure of Odisha is highlighted. Various financial inclusion initiatives are taken by the Reserve Bank with a particular reference to Odisha. The macroeconomic policy challenges are explained here. [Seminar on Role of Banks in Odisha’s Development, organized...

Microfinance intervention is considered an important component of development strategy to mainstream the poor rural households with the formal financial system in India. However, there is some evidence for the reverse, that microfinance may, in fact, increase informal money lending, if clients...

The heterogeneity in view about the financial inclusion prevails across the globe. Since the need of financial products varies from individual to individual and country to country (Kempson and Whyley, 1999; Regan and Paxton, 2003; Speak and Graham, 2000). But, majority of researchers and thinkers opine...

Less than half the population in India has access to any formal financial instrument. Therefore, financial inclusion assumes greater importance with each passing day. Previous work and initiatives in promoting financial inclusion have mostly focused on the process, that is, how to make banking...

This paper analyzes the capacity of mobile-payment solutions to improve financial inclusion in developing countries. It elaborates from rural East African countries experiences where mobile payment services have developed rapidly. With a simple dynamic model which rationalizes traders' adoption...

This paper leverages the IMF’s Financial Access Survey (FAS) database to construct a new composite index of financial inclusion. The topic of financial inclusion has gathered significant attention in recent years. Various initiatives have been undertaken by central banks both in advanced...

In the wake of the recent global crisis the international community is giving an increased focus on stability of the financial system, so-called financial stability analysis. With the increasing need for data sets to undertake this analysis, the question naturally arises as to what types of data...