Monti di Pietà were first founded in the 1460s as public banks whose aim was to provide citizens with solidaristic credit. In this institution, the interplay between the objects pawned and the small money loans granted in exchange was vital and mediated by a wellorganized paper "ecosystem" of...

Monti di Pietà were first founded in the 1460s as public banks whose aim was to provide citizens with solidaristic credit. In this institution, the interplay between the objects pawned and the small money loans granted in exchange was vital and mediated by a wellorganized paper "ecosystem" of...

Pawnbroking, one of the oldest and most accessible forms of credit, was a common feature of life in pre-famine and famine Ireland. This paper studies the role of pawnbroking in the Irish financial system during this important period, applying insights from modern studies on fringe banking to...

We exploit a natural experiment to measure the causal effect of negative credit information on the employment and earnings of Swedish individuals at the margins of formal credit and labor markets. We estimate that one additional year of negative credit information reduces employment by 3% and...

1.Introduction: Fair Price and Sufficient Profit -- 2.Victorian Pawnbrokers: Cancerous Worms of Ruin or the Poor Man’s Banker? -- 3.Moneylenders: Deeply Rooted Evil or Providers of Quick Cash? -- 4.Legitimate Bankers: Pawnbrokers and Moneylenders Join the Premier League -- 5.Small-loan...

Credit information affects the allocation of consumer credit, but its effects on other markets that are relevant for academic and policy analysis are unknown. This paper measures the effect of negative credit information on the employment and earnings of Swedish individuals at the margins of the...

Credit information affects the allocation of consumer credit, but its effects on other markets that are relevant for academic and policy analysis are unknown. This paper measures the effect of negative credit information on the employment and earnings of Swedish individuals at the margins of the...

This book is a wide-ranging and timely overview of the contemporary Chinese banking system. It charts the vast changes in Chinese banking from before China’s admission to the WTO in 2001 to more recent regulatory reform and developments in the shadow banking sector. The book begins with an...

Evidence from developed countries shows debt and bankruptcy to be correlated with medical expenditures. In Mexico, the formal financial sector does not lend for health needs. So, the solution is often found by borrowing from relatives, friends, and moneylenders, or pawning belongings after using...

Drive through just about any low-income neighborhood and you're sure to see streets lined with pawnshops, check cashers, rent-to-own stores, payday and tax refund lenders, auto title pawns, and buy-here-pay-here used car lots. We're awash in "alternative financial services" directed at the poor...