Financial Inclusion in Asia: An Overview

Publication | September 2015
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In terms of financial inclusion, fewer than 27% of adults in developing Asia have an account in a formal financial institution, and only 33% of enterprises report having a line of credit or a loan from a financial institution.

Despite economic growth, the delivery of financial services at affordable costs to disadvantaged and low-income segments of society remains an issue across Asia and the Pacific.

In terms of aggregate measures of financial development, the region as a whole has superior banking sector depth compared to other developing regions. However, this masks a great deal of variation across Asian economies. On financial inclusion, the most commonly reported barriers are cost, geographic access, and lack of identification.

This paper provides an analysis of financial development and inclusion in developing Asia using data from a wide array of sources.

Contents

  • Abstract
  • Introduction
  • Financial Inclusion in Asia: The Facts
  • Financial Inclusion in Asia: The Challenges
  • Conclusion
  • References

Additional Details

Authors
Type
Series
Subjects
  • Finance sector development
  • Financial inclusion and microfinance
SKU
  • WPS157603-2
ISSN
  • ISSN 2313-6537 (Print)
  • 2313-6545 (e-ISSN)

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