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Inclusive Finance
Inclusive finance, also known as financial inclusion, refers to the provision of accessible, affordable, and timely financial products and services to all individuals and businesses, regardless of income level or socioeconomic status. This encompasses services such as banking, credit, insurance, and payment systems, delivered responsibly and sustainably. By integrating underserved populations into the financial system, inclusive finance fosters entrepreneurship, reduces poverty, and promotes economic growth.
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In the balance: Consumer protection and credit exclusion in the affordability crisis
This report analyses consumer credit access for British low- to middle-income households. It finds that credit is not scarce but frequently unaffordable, with 1.15 million households lent to irresponsibly. It advocates for stronger FCA affordability oversight, interest-free alternatives, and government reforms to social security and insolvency frameworks.
From retail-accessible to retail-facing: Green finance for EU households
This research examines transitioning sustainable finance into retail-facing products for EU households. While green bond supply is robust, regulatory fragmentation and distribution barriers limit participation. It recommends standardising product architecture and sustainability summaries to integrate these instruments into mainstream saving channels and increase household investment in the climate transition.
Doing better at doing good: Lessons from a Bayesian meta-analysis after 20 years of poverty graduation programs
This Bayesian meta-analysis of 49 Graduation studies reveals significant gains in household consumption, income, and assets. Programmes implemented since 2016 show an 87 per cent increase in benefit-cost ratios compared to earlier efforts. While larger transfers increase impacts, they do not necessarily improve cost-effectiveness over lower-cost interventions.
Banking on local places: Credit unions as engines of fairer local economies
This report examines credit unions as drivers for fairer local economies in the United Kingdom. It highlights financial exclusion, showing only two per cent of the population are members. Recommendations include empowering Pride in Place Neighbourhood Boards and introducing a Fair Banking Act to increase affordable credit access and community reinvestment.
Beyond access: Thailand and the frontiers of financial inclusion: Harnessing innovation for inclusive and responsible finance
This report examines Thailand's transition to second-generation financial inclusion. It analyses the evolution of digital finance, regulatory innovations in digital public infrastructure, and strategies for consumer protection. The study highlights policy considerations for managing risks like household debt and fraud while fostering a competitive and inclusive financial ecosystem.
Local currency donor-backed solutions: An evaluation
This report evaluates donor-backed local currency financing solutions for emerging markets using three criteria: viability, capital market development, and cost-efficiency. It assesses the IDA Private Sector Window, TCX EU Market Creation Facility, and EBRD SME programme, concluding that broader structures and explicit market development are essential for sustainability.
Trade finance: How volatile financial conditions influence its availability and impact trade levels
This joint report by the IFC and WTO explores how global financial volatility constrains trade finance availability, particularly in emerging markets. Utilising ICC data, the study demonstrates that increased uncertainty and lower financial development hinder trade growth. It advocates for policy responses to enhance shock resilience in developing economies.
How DFI private capital mobilisation can support local capital market development in Africa
This report examines how development finance institutions (DFIs) can mobilise private capital to strengthen African local capital markets. It details six key interventions, including anchoring issuances and technical assistance. It further provides a country classification framework to help DFIs prioritise engagement in markets with the greatest potential for scale.
Gender-disaggregated data for inclusive regulation playbook: From gender data to regulatory action
This playbook assists financial regulatory authorities to transition from collecting gender-disaggregated data to using it systematically in supervision and policymaking. Drawing on research in Nigeria and Tanzania, it outlines a three-phase approach—discovery, ideation, and prototype advancement—supported by a framework of eleven foundations to ensure effective, inclusive regulation.
Can the emergence of AgFinTech revolutionize agrifinance? Lessons from five case studies in Africa, Asia, and Latin America
This report examines how digital innovations address barriers to inclusive agricultural credit in developing countries. Through five case studies, it highlights the role of agri-data stacks and AI-powered analytics in reducing information asymmetries, improving risk management, and lowering service delivery costs for smallholder farmers and agri-MSMEs.
Making places better, together: The civic impact of Community Municipal Investments
This report examines Community Municipal Investments (CMIs), a mechanism for UK councils to raise capital from residents. Evidence from 19 councils and 309 investors demonstrates that CMIs create civic value, increase public trust, and offer financial savings of 29 basis points on average against the Public Works Loan Board.
Expanding social security coverage in the informal economy: China’s experience and lessons
This report analyses strategies for extending social security to informal workers, comparing China’s transition to near-universal coverage with evolving systems in Kenya and Lao PDR. It highlights the role of digital transformation, fiscal subsidies, and pilot programmes in overcoming barriers to inclusive, sustainable social protection systems.
The true cost of impact-first investing: A comparative analysis of the economics and subsidy structure of impact-first investing
This research by the Miller Center and partners analyses 362 deals to illuminate the true costs of impact-first investing. It finds these funds are operationally efficient but face a structurally underfunded 'premium for inclusion'. The study argues fund-level subsidies are essential for bridging the enterprise-level Valley of Death.
State of blended finance series
State of Blended Finance is a research series examining how public, philanthropic and private capital combine to finance sustainable development in emerging markets. It analyses transaction structures, investor participation, capital mobilisation, development impact, market trends and barriers to scaling blended finance.
Landscape of technical assistance to agri-SMEs: Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean
This report maps the technical assistance ecosystem for agri-SMEs in sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. It identifies structural gaps in information, pre-investment funding, and coordination. The analysis offers strategies to strengthen the ecosystem, highlighting the importance of nature integration and supporting local providers to improve investment readiness.
International credit to Africa
This research examines the rapid expansion of international credit to Africa since the Global Financial Crisis. It highlights the rise of Chinese lending under the Belt and Road Initiative, the dramatic growth of international bond issuance, and the continued dominance of governments as borrowers in US dollar-denominated markets.
