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  5. Improving Financial Inclusion through Digital Savings and Credit

AEA Papers and Proceedings

ISSN 2574-0768 (Print) | ISSN 2574-0776 (Online)

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Improving Financial Inclusion through Digital Savings and Credit

  • Prashant Bharadwaj
  • Tavneet Suri
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 110, May 2020
(pp. 584–88)
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Abstract

This paper examines the effects of promotions to increase participation in digital banking and improve financial inclusion. M-Shwari, Kenya's most popular digital banking platform, ran a promotion called Stawisha Na M-Shwari from mid-April 2016 to early June 2016. The promotion incentivized individuals to save and to repay loans. We find large and persistent effects of the promotion on loan-taking behavior. While savings ramp up during the promotional period, we do not see sustained increases in savings after the end of the promotion.

Citation

Bharadwaj, Prashant, and Tavneet Suri. 2020. "Improving Financial Inclusion through Digital Savings and Credit." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 110: 584–88. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20201084

Additional Materials

JEL Classification

  • G21 Banks; Depository Institutions; Micro Finance Institutions; Mortgages
  • G28 Financial Institutions and Services: Government Policy and Regulation
  • G51 Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
  • M31 Marketing
  • O16 Economic Development: Financial Markets; Saving and Capital Investment; Corporate Finance and Governance