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Byline: Vaishnavi Yadav In an increasingly crowded fintech market, Super.money has set out to redefine how consumers experience digital payments and rewards. Their unique credit-first UPI service platform aims to [...]

As recently as 1974, banks were legally allowed to deny women credit or charge them higher interest if they failed to get a male cosigner. But that year, on Oct. [...]

Productivity improvement is an important driving force for developing countries to accelerate the development of agricultural sectors and promote the transformation of economic structures. However, few studies have focused on the impact of credit access on family farms’ scale efficiency, a contributor to productivity changes. We address this gap by using data collected from a survey of 565 family farms in East China. The stochastic frontier input distance function (SFIDF) is utilized to measure the scale efficiency, and the endogenous switching regression model (ESRM) is employed to estimate average treatment effect (ATT) and address the selection bias. The empirical results show that the average scale efficiency is 0.768, with credit users and non-users averaging 0.802 and 0.737, respectively. Most family farms operate below their optimal production scale, and only about 14.5 % of family farms exceed this optimal scale. Access to credit has significantly improved the scale efficiency of family farms and has not contributed to the excessive pursuit of scale expansion for financial subsidies. These findings are validated by robustness checks. The conclusions of our study have important implications for developing countries seeking to increase financial support for agricultural development.

Global Banking News-March 28, 2024-Varo Bank Launches Products Designed to Help Expand Access to Credit and In-App Budgeting (C)2024 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk California, US-based Varo Bank, N.A., the first nationally-chartered [...]

Global Banking News-December 14, 2023-FICO Parters with Ukrainian Credit Bureau with Initiative to Help Refugees in Poland Get Access to Credit (C)2023 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Global analytics software leader FICO [...]

Equal access to small-business credit is a critical underpinning to equity in economic opportunity; however, it is difficult to regularly assess the fairness of credit provision. Prior research has focused on the Federal Reserve Board's Survey of Small Business Finance, but the most recent data from this source is from 2003. This article provides preliminary results on new credit access questions added to the Census Bureau's 2021 Annual Business Survey. We find that minority-owned businesses generally were just as likely to apply for credit in 2020, but Black-, Asian-, and Hispanic-owned businesses were less likely than white-owned businesses to report receiving all of the credit that they sought. Also, Black-, Asian-, and Hispanic-owned businesses more frequently reported seeking credit in order to cover operating expenses rather than for financing capital expenditures or expansion. Pleading into 2022, minority-owned businesses report weaker ongoing viability., Equal access to small-business credit is a critical underpinning to equity in economic opportunity; however, it is difficult to regularly assess the fairness of credit provision. Fair credit access depends [...]

'Zombie' companies are facing a year of pain ahead, according to think tank expert Sonya Gibbs. Gibbs pointed to higher interest rates, which could strain finances at overborrowed firms. But [...]

April 06 -- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed pre-sanctioned credit lines at banks through Unified Payments Interface (UPI). RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das made this announcement while announcing [...]

Global Banking News-March 28, 2023-Equifax Launches OneScore Scoring Model to Help Expand Access to Credit and Drive Financially Inclusive Lending (C)2023 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk US-based data, analytics, and technology company [...]

We analyze the geographical differences in the Italian firms’ access conditions to credit in the period 2010–19. In line with earlier studies, our econometric results confirm that firms headquartered in the South of Italy face worse borrowing conditions compared to similar firms in the Centre-North. Southern firms pay higher interest rates on loans and are more frequently asked to pledge their assets as collateral. Credit lines granted to them are also more fragile as banks are more prone to call them back. Those less favorable credit access conditions end up reducing credit demand. Finally, we document, in line with previous studies, that the gap in credit conditions is partly due to external diseconomies that are more severe in the South of Italy.

I INTRODUCTION There is a causality between financial inclusion, access to credit, and the way modern and efficient secured transactions law principles facilitate these concepts for the benefit of small [...]

A lowcredit score can hurt your ability to take out a loan, secure a good interest rate, or increase the spending limit on your credit card. Some reasons for a [...]

A lowcredit score can hurt your ability to take out a loan, secure a good interest rate, or increase the spending limit on your credit card. Some reasons for a [...]

Byline: Ram Krishna Sinha, Former General Manager, Bank of India In course my interactions with MSME entrepreneurs, I have observed that despite mandated lending and ongoing policy focus, access to [...]

This Issue arose out of an in-person colloquium held at the Durham Law School at Durham University in England in 2019. That colloquium included a celebration of the appointment of [...]

I INTRODUCTION Most Americans assume that debt is mainly about transaction and choice in a market. (1) But in the United States and some other advanced economies, debt is much [...]

I INTRODUCTION This is a symposium about using commercial law and financial regulation to improve lives. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown how economic inequality strains our financial and political systems. [...]

Purpose: Promoted for its inclusivity, agricultural value chain (AVC) financing leverages social capital and mechanisms such as off-take agreements and forward contracts to reduce borrowing and lending costs and risks for both farmers and lending institutions. AVC financing has been defined as the flow of financial products and services to and among the various actors within the AVC to address constraints of production and distribution and fulfill the needs of those involved in the chain by reducing risk and improving efficiency. This paper investigates how farmers' involvement in AVC affects their access to credit. Design/methodology/approach: The authors collected primary data from 400 crop farmers in northern Ghana through a semi-structured questionnaire and analyzed the data, using the multinomial endogenous switching regression model. Findings: Joint participation in AVC increased the amount of formal and informal credit received by 64 and 78%, respectively, compared to nonparticipation. Similarly, participation in AVC horizontal linkage and AVC vertical linkage increased the amount of formal and informal credit received by 40 and 47% and 46 and 74%, respectively, compared to nonparticipation. Irrigation farming, extension visits, knowledge of AVC in the community, access to a storage facility and trust in contract farming significantly influenced farmers' participation in AVC. Originality/value: The authors’ work offers valuable insights into how different dimensions of value chain participation can impact smallholder farmers' access to credit. This work also underscores the importance of considering both formal and informal credit sources when analyzing the outcomes of value chain participation. The findings could enable formal financial providers to identify, liaise and/or resource informal financial players such as value chain actors to supply both formal and informal credit to farmers in AVCs.

Artificial intelligence, machine learning and alternative data are increasingly touted for improving fraud detection, compliance, credit underwriting and banking operations in general. For credit underwriting, AI and alternative data may [...]

Global Banking News-August 15, 2022-Lendflow To Improve Access to Credit For Small Businesses (C)2022 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Ocrolus, the document and data analysis platform that helps financial services companies make [...]

Global Banking News-July 19, 2022--Survey says European banks will keep tightening access to credit (C)2022 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Global Banking News - 19 July 2022 A survey by the European [...]

Global Banking News-April 14, 2022-Cross River, Revolut to Deliver More Affordable Access to Credit (C)2022 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Cross River Bank, a technology infrastructure provider that offers embedded financial solutions, [...]

In 1974, President Gerald Ford signed the Fair Credit Opportunity Act into law, granting women the right to open a credit card in their own name. Prior to this, banks could deny women credit or charge them higher interest rates without a male cosigner. The act was a significant milestone, allowing women to establish their own financial security and escape situations of domestic violence. The law was later amended to cover discrimination based on religion, race, national origin, age, and receipt of public assistance benefits. This legislation played a crucial role in promoting women's economic participation and fostering a more inclusive society. [Extracted from the article]

LATAM Airlines Group is having trouble getting enough lenders to extend the USD600 million revolving line of credit the company needs to exit bankruptcy, reports Bloomberg. So far, the airline [...]

Global Banking News-December 6, 2021--Indian minister calls on banks to provide easier access to credit for small borrowers (C)2021 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Global Banking News - 06 December 2021 Indian [...]

Global Banking News-August 27, 2021--Qred and Enfuce to collaborate to provide instant access to credit for small businesses (C)2021 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Global Banking News - 27 August 2021 European [...]

Global Banking News-July 30, 2021-Equifax expands access to credit with acquisition of Teletrack from CoreLogic (C)2021 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Equifax (NYSE: EFX), a US-based data, analytics and technology company, has [...]

This study evaluates the implications that access to credit has on welfare inequality in Malawi in order to address the gap left in previous studies concerning credit. The study employed data from Malawi’s Integrated Household Survey 2017 and used the propensity score analysis to examine what impact access to credit may have on the welfare of Malawian households using consumption per capita as a proxy for household welfare. The study further proceeded to use the generalized Lorenz curve, the Theil indexes as well as the Gini to examine the inequalities present in welfare among the households that access credit and those that do not. The results showed a positive impact of access to credit on welfare as households with access to credit experience lower levels of inequality than those without. However, a closer examination of the Theil’s indexes found that factors unrelated to access to credit had a stronger effect on inter-household inequalities than access to credit. The results imply that the impact that access to credit has on welfare inequality is a positive one, but its effect is substantially small. Thus, implying that policies aimed at enhancing distribution of credit should continue. Simultaneously, a more holistic approach on reducing inequality should be included at both household level and national level to achieve a desired result.

Starting with the natural credit relationship between financial institutions and enterprises, this paper examines the relationship between distance-based access to credit and green innovation by using the data of financial licenses and listed enterprises. Based on the resource dependence theory, the authors use the geographical location of bank branches and enterprises to build micro-level credit access indicators. It shows that enterprises with better access to credit have more motivation to carry out green innovation. Taking the number of branches of the Bank of China in 1937 as an instrumental variable, it still supports the above results. Its influence lies in the reduction of financing constraints of enterprises. This paper further discusses the impact of green finance and digitization. The development of green finance and digitization could replace the benefits of distance-based access to credit. Combined with the transformation process of traditional banks in the future, this paper puts forward some policy suggestions to promote green innovation and low-carbon development.

ABSTRACTThe present work provides a comprehensive analysis of the effect of two prominent channels of financial-sector development (FSD)—economic growth and access to credit—on the poor in India. Employing panel data analysis for a sample of 15 major Indian states for the period 1999–2000 to 2011–2012, we provide empirical evidence for the effect of the two channels of FSD on poverty ratio, poverty gap ratio, and squared poverty gap in India. The results indicate that while access to credit and growth have reduced poverty and poverty gap in India, it has disproportionately benefitted the population living closer to the poverty line resulting in increased inequality among the poor. Further, while bank credit has a greater beneficial effect on the poor, it also has a greater detrimental effect on the poorest of the poor. The robustness check confirms the validity of the obtained results.

Event At the meeting of the monetary policy committee of the Bank of Ghana (BoG, the central bank) in late May, the policy rate was cut by 100 basis points, [...]

Byline: Adgully Bureau India is gearing up for, what is being termed as, a never-before Budget, which will be the country's first paperless and mobile. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman recently [...]

This study examined how agricultural sector performance will be enhanced in Nigeria through access to credit. The study engaged a time series data sourced from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) statistical bulletin and the World Development Indicators (WDI) of the World Bank for the period 198–2018. The Autoregressive Distribution Lag (ARDL) method was used in the analysis. Results showed that agricultural credit proxied by agricultural credit guarantee scheme fund (ACGSF) and commercial bank credit to agriculture significantly increased agricultural performance by 10.30% and 17.05% respectively. Also, other explanatory variables included in the model (arable land and agricultural employment) tend to increase agricultural performance by 65.51% and 12.40% respectively. Based on findings, the study recommended that farmers should be provided with sufficient access to credit which will enhance their ability to purchase agricultural inputs required to increase productivity.

Byline: Kevin Oklobzija Having already acted to ward off a potential catastrophic collapse of the global economy, the Federal Reserve is now focused on ensuring a rebound of the U.S. [...]

Ansys announced that it issued an open letter to its investors amid the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, in which the company stated in part: 'At the onset of the crisis, [...]

Ghana wants the new bank to ease the access to credit and finance for its SMEs, which comprise about 80% of businesses in the country, by providing loans with tenors [...]

A study conducted by researchers at the Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences in the Netherlands explores the effectiveness of a new financial literacy-based psychometric credit scoring model (PSM) in improving access to finance for sole traders and micro-organizations during volatile market conditions. The study found that the PSM resulted in a 30% higher approval rate and a 23% lower default rate compared to the traditional credit scoring model (TCSM). Additionally, during periods of market volatility, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, the PSM exhibited a 13% higher approval rate and a 20% lower default rate than the TCSM. The research suggests that PSMs offer a viable option for promoting financial inclusion and targeted financial education among micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in unstable financial markets. [Extracted from the article]

Global Banking News-April 29, 2019-LendingClub, Opportunity Fund, Funding Circle partner to increase small business access to credit and financial inclusion (C)2019 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Online credit marketplace LendingClub Corporation (NYSE: [...]

Byline: Shabbir Kazmi PAGE: EDP has been in business for a long time, what are its key achievements? Syed Hamza Matin: EDP Services have over a decade of experience with [...]

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to analyze the effects of access to credit on maize productivity in Mali, by identifying the determinants of credit market participation and maize yield, and then estimating the impact of credit on maize yield. Design/methodology/approach: This study analyzes the impact of credit on maize productivity using data from the World Bank 2014 Living Standards Measurement Survey (LSMS) on Mali, and the endogenous switching regression (ESR) model. Findings: The results suggest a positive effect of credit on maize yield in Mali. Farm size, production shocks and the female gender exert negative effects on credit market participation, unlike education, intercropping with cotton, male family labor and fertilizer use which show positive effects. Farm size has a negative effect on maize yield, but both male family labor, and fertilizer use exert positive effects. Although the use of credit improves agricultural yields, the results show a greater potential effect for rationed producers, than credit users. Research limitations/implications: These results suggest that implementing a credit strategy that allows those currently excluded from the credit market, to participate, could substantially increase productivity and maize production output in furtherance of the country's food security strategy. Gender-based targeting is needed to bridge the gender gap in access to credit. Originality/value: As far as the authors are aware, this study is the first to explore the credit-farm productivity links in Mali, while addressing selection bias.

Global Banking News-July 26, 2018-Equifax expands consumer access to credit with acquisition of DataX (C)2018 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk Information solutions company Equifax Inc, (NYSE: EFX) has acquired DataX Ltd, a [...]

Many countries have seen a rising demand for forest policy reform. This paper explores the effects of China’s forestland mortgage policy, a supporting measure for collective forest tenure reform, on household credit access. In theory, the forestland mortgage policy could have three impacts on households: (1) forestland possession could change households’ willingness to access credit (2) forestland possession could enhance household access to credit, and (3) the contract structure follows the theoretical predictions of the credit contract design mechanism. Our results show that households’ willingness to enroll in the mortgage policy as well as their potential to obtain credit increased when households possessed larger areas of forestland. However, the proportion of households that successfully obtained credit were fairly modest. Meanwhile, we found a positive relationship between collateralized forestland and the amount of the forestland mortgage loan, and a negative relationship between collateralized forestland and the interest rate. These findings are consistent with the theoretical predictions of the contract mechanism design. The existing forestland mortgage policy has increased households’ credit access to some extent; however, there is much room for improvement from a policy perspective. This requires divising policy arrangements that would facilitate a fully developed credit market available to households. Forest tenure mortgage loans alone may not be able to fully meet households’ financial needs.

Byline: William Morris A new report finds that 46 percent of small businesses with at least one employee that applied for credit in 2017 received the full amount they sought, [...]

THE Arab Spring ushered in a dawn of change across many countries in the Arab world. Discontent drove the demonstrations, and later the discourse. Now a new world has begun [...]

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the effect of savings mobilization on access to credit among smallholder farmers’ in the Birim central municipality of Ghana. Design/methodology/approach: A cross-sectional primary data set was used to estimate the factors influencing smallholder farmers’ access to credit and size of loan to be borrowed using the IV-Probit and IV-Tobit model. Findings: The results of the study revealed that savings mobilization has a positive significant impact on access to credit and the total amount of credit one can borrow as well. Other control variables such as transaction cost and farm size depicted a negative significant impact on access to credit. Land ownership, member of an association, household size, years of farming experience and education also showed a positive significant impact on access to credit. Research limitations/implications: The paper only examined the savings effect on credit accessibility among smallholder farmers in one of the municipality’s in the Eastern region of Ghana. Future research should consider all or many municipality for an informed generalization of findings. Practical implications: This paper provides evidence that smallholder farmers knowledge on the financial market is poor and it would require the policymakers or NGOs to organize financial management training programs so that the farmers high ignorance of the financial market will significantly reduce. Originality/value: Although existing studies have examined smallholder farmers’ access to credit, the unique contribution of this paper is the analysis of the impact of saving mobilization on credit accessibility in Ghana, a major access to credit determinant in the financial market. In addition, those researchers who factored in savings as an access to credit determinant did not also consider the casual relationship between these two variables, thus, the present of endogeneity of which this paper does.

Byline: Kate Berry The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is seeking more information about consumers' experience with free access to credit scores. In two separate notices published in the Federal Register [...]

The effects of privatization and increased foreign ownership of banks in Argentina on access to credit outside Buenos Aires is discussed and analyzed.