This paper reports results from the randomized evaluation of a group lending microcredit program in Hyderabad, India. A lender worked in 52 randomly selected neighborhoods, leading to an 8.4 percentage point increase in takeup of microcredit. Small business investment and … Read More
Publications
Barriers to Basic Banking: Results from an Audit Study in South India
This working paper presents findings from an experimental study conducted in urban South India to examine the barriers faced by customers in purchasing a low-cost savings product. The authors found that banks have a high ability to influence financial access … Read More
Engendered Access Engendered Care? Evidence from a Major Indian Hospital
A central feature of many developing countries is the presence of significant gender differentials in health outcomes. Two potential factors that can account for this are that females access treatment later than males and that they receive differential care at … Read More
Dynamics of Demand for Index Insurance: Evidence from a Long-run Field Experiment
This paper estimates how experimentally-manipulated experiences with a novel financial product, rainfall index insurance, affect subsequent insurance demand. Using a seven-year panel, we develop three main findings. First, recent experience matters for demand, consistent with overinference from small samples. Second, … Read More
Tamil Nadu State Rural Livelihoods Mission (TNSRLM)
The Tamil Nadu State Rural Livelihoods Mission (TNSRLM) plans to expand in Tamil Nadu with the same guiding principles as Tamil Nadu Pudhu Vaazhvu Project (TNPVP). The Annual Action Plan of TNSRLM states that the TNPVP will be the “pilot … Read More
Developing Financing Strategies for Implementing the State Action Plans on Climate Change
This report is a high level strategy document based on interim findings from a study on ‘Developing Financing Strategies for Implementing the State Action Plans on Climate Change.’ It primarily focuses on strategies for states to access and leverage Central … Read More
The Economic Returns to Social Interaction: Experimental Evidence from Microfinance
In this study, microfinance clients were randomly assigned to repayment groups that met either weekly or monthly during their first loan cycle, and then graduated to identical meeting frequency for their second loan. Long-run survey data and a follow-up public … Read More
Gold Loans as an Alternative Source of Credit for Low-income Households
The demand for gold in India has always been high, thus creating a huge potential for growth in the gold loan market. In recent decades, the market has emerged as a reliable sources of credit for low-income households. This report … Read More
Marketing Weather-indexed Agricultural Insurance to Smallholder Farmers in Rural Gujarat, India
This policy note presents findings from a study “Index Insurance to Manage Weather Risks: A Long-term Experiment” where the authors investigate the effectiveness of rainfall insurance as a tool to help farmers manage risk. The research also examines whether farmers … Read More
Self Help Group Bank Linkage: Through the Responsible Finance Lens
The report presents findings from a study that attempts to answer the questions associated with the above mentioned objective by collecting primary data from SHGs and SHPIs across three states -Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka.