Financial Well-being and Social Protection

Financial Inclusion in Gulbarga: Finding Usage in Access

Minakshi Ramji

The paper presents insights from a study to assess the implementation of the financial inclusion drive and usage of banking services by households in Gulbarga district in Karnataka, one of the locations that claimed to have achieved 100% financial inclusion.

Business Correspondent Model: A Preliminary Exploration

Binit Rath, Minakshi Ramji, Alexandra Kobishyn

Since its inception in 2006, various banks have promoted the BC model in all corners of the country, though few of these efforts have scaled up beyond modest pilots. There is scarce documentation on how these pilots work in the … Read More

Cost-Benefit and Usage Behaviour Analysis of No Frills Accounts: A Study Report on Cuddalore District

S. Thyagarajan, Jayaram Venkatesan

This report presents insights from a study that aimed to analyze the results of the no frills financial inclusion drive in Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu in terms of coverage by geographical and other categories, cost involved in account opening … Read More

Weather Insurance, Price Information, and Hedging: Helping the Poor Manage Risk

Shawn Cole, Raghabendra Chattopadhyay, Stefan Hunt, Jeremy Tobacman, Petia Topalova

This brief presents insights from a research project that explores the impact of a complementary pair of products that will enable poor farmers to better manage agricultural risk, especially by helping them accumulate assets and increase productivity even in the … Read More

Repayment Frequency and Default in Microfinance: Evidence from India

Erica Field, Rohini Pande

In stark contrast to bank debt contracts, most microfinance contracts require that repayments start nearly immediately after loan disbursement and occur weekly thereafter. Even though economic theory suggests that a more flexible repayment schedule would benefit clients and potentially improve … Read More

Meeting the Needs of the Unbanked in Jharkhand

Mary Albino, Sarita Subramanian

To better understand Jharkhand’s challenges in achieving financial inclusion and economic growth, this case study gathers a wide range of perspectives on the status and future potential of expanding the outreach of financial services in the state’s banking and non-banking … Read More

Geographic Distribution of Microfinance Services in India, 2007

Doug Johnson

IFMR LEAD systematically collected district-wise data on number of active borrowers and loans outstanding for several of India’s largest MFIs over three years as part of its Map of Microfinance project sponsored by the Swiss Agency for Cooperation and Development. … Read More

Housing Microfinance: Designing a Product for the Rural Poor

Cheryl Young

This paper discusses the potential of providing housing finance to the poor through microfinance institutions (MFIs) and issues that are likely to arise in doing so. Using a demand assessment conducted at Ankuram Sangamam Porum (ASP) in Andhra Pradesh, the … Read More

Satin Creditcare Network Limited: Unique In its Field

Navneet Daga

This case study aims to identify innovative practices among MFIs operating in the urban space, particularly strategies for broad basing their clients, financial services offered, and community involvement. With the above goals in mind, this study details the strategies Satin … Read More

Reaching the Other 100 Million Poor in India: Case Studies in Urban Microfinance

IFMR LEAD

This study combines several independent CMF studies with six prominent microfinance institutions that operate in urban areas. These case studies identify innovative practices among these institutions, including strategies used for broad basing their clients, examining the array of financial services … Read More