Access to financial services in Nepal / Aurora Ferrari ; with Guillemette Jaffrin and Sabin Raj Shrestha.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Ferrari, Aurora.

Contributor:

Jaffrin, Guillemette.

Shrestha, Sabin.

World Bank.

Series:

Directions in development (Washington, D.C.). Finance

Directions in development

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Financial services industry--Nepal.

Financial services industry.

Nepal.

Physical Description:

xvi, 82 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Washington, D.C. : World Bank, [2007]

Summary:

Over the past 20 years Nepal's financial sector has become deeper and the number and type of financial intermediaries have grown rapidly. Recent reforms have also made the banking sector more stable. Still, access to financial services remains limited for many people in Nepal, and has even been declining in recent years. This book examines the country's supply of and demand for financial services and the constraints to increasing access to them. It offers recommendations on how to make the financial sector work for all of Nepal's people, and especially for low-income households and small businesses.

Contents:

Chapter 1 The Supply of Financial Services 1

Recent Developments in the Financial Sector 1

Government Efforts to Increase Access to Financial Services 5

Despite Government Efforts, Access to Financial Services Is Declining 7

Remittances Are a Missed Opportunity for the Financial Sector 11

Chapter 2 The Demand for Financial Services 15

Most Deposit Accounts Are Held by Banks, Followed Closely by Financial NGOs and Cooperatives 16

For Loans, Financial NGOs and Cooperatives Are the Largest Providers 20

For Payment and Remittance Services, the Informal Sector Dominates 23

Chapter 3 Constraints to Increased Access for Small Businesses and Low-income Households 27

Government Policies Have Not Tackled the Root Causes of Low Access 27

Why Don't Banks Scale Up Lending to Small Businesses? 28

Why Haven't Microfinance Institutions Provided More Financial Services to Low-income Households? 36

Why Do Informal Channels Dominate the Remittance Market? 41

Chapter 4 Making the Financial Sector Work for Small Businesses and Low-income Households 43

Key Principles for Successful Government Intervention 43

Helping Banks Expand Lending to Small Businesses 44

Helping Microfinance Institutions Serve More Low-income Households 48

Making Remittances More Effective 53

Appendix A Legal Framework of the Regulated Microfinance Sector 55

Appendix B Performance of Regulated Microfinance Institutions 57

Appendix C The Access to Financial Services Survey 70

Appendix D Households Receiving Foreign Remittances 75.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (page 77) and index.

ISBN:

9780821369890

082136989X

0821369903

9780821369906

OCLC:

134993268